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DOCUMENTARY
History of Rhinebeck,
IN OITXCHESS COlTTKiTY, Pif. V.,
EMBRACING
Biographical Sl^etclies and Genealogical Records of Our First Families
and First Settlers,
A HISTORY OF ITS CHURCHES AND OTHER PUBLIC
INSTITUTIONS.
EDWARD M. SMITH.
RHINEBECK, DUTCHESS COUNTY, N. V.
rSSi.
INDEX.
CHAP. PAGE
1. Indian Deeds and Patent to Artsen & Co 7
2. The Beekman Patent 16
3. The Schuyler Patent 23
4. The Kips and Their Lands 37
5. The Van Wagenens and Their Lands 33
6. Arie Roosa and His Lands 39
7. Jan Elton and His Lands 43
8. The North Ward 45
9. Organization of the Precinct 47
10. The Beekman Family 53
11. The Hoffman Family 80
12. The Van Benthuysens and Heermances 83
13. Our Palatine Settlers 86
14. The German Reformed Church 91
15. The Rhinebeck Lutheran Church 98
16. The Reformed Dutch Church 107
17. The Wurtemburgh Church 119
18. Red Hook Reformed Dutch Church 133
19. Upper Red Hook Reformed Dutch Church 136
20. Rhinebeck Methodist Church 135
21. Rhinebeck Baptist Church 146
22. Rhinebeck Village Lutheran Church 154
23. Tlie Rhinebeck Episcopal Church . . 157
24. The Rhinebeck Roman Catholic Church 163
35. Rhinebeck Flatts 164
26. Public Institutions and Buildings 170
27. Rhinebeck Genealogy 172
28. Rhinebeck in the Civil War 330
APPENDIX.
Old Buildings 335
Town and Precinct Officers 387
U. S. Senators from Rhinebeck 231
Representatives in Congress from Rhinebeck 231
State Senators 231
Members of Assembly 232
Staatsburgh 232
An Old Settlement 238
INTRODUCTORY.
The map on the ^'♦receding page includes the patents to
Maj. Peter ISchuyler and (iemt Artsen & Co., in 3 688, and
that to Henry Beekman in 1697, and shows the territory
which constituted the town of Rhinebeck from 1788 to 1812.
The precinct of Rhinebeck, organized in 1784, contained, in
addition to this territory, "■Pawling's purchase'' on the
south, becoming in part the property of Dr. Samuel Staats,
of New York, in 1701, and Ivnown thereafter as Staatsburgh.
(See Appendix.) The town of Red Hook co\'-ers all of the
Schuyler, and we thinlv a i3art of the Beekman patent,
while the town of Rhinebeck contains the Beekman patent,
and also the jmtent to Artsen, Roosa, Elton, and the two
Kips, know^n as Kipsbergen in our early history. The town
of Rhinebeck contains 21,'Si)'S acres, about 2,2()() of which
were included in the Artsen patent, and the tow^n of Red
Hook 22,22;") acres. Rhinebeck creek is so-called because
it has its main springs in the part of the town laid out for
the '• High Dutchers," and called Rein Beek. It runs
through level meadow land from beginning to end ; has
no falls, and has, therefore, never tiu-ned a mill. Lands-
man's civek was so-called, either because all its water-falls,
('a])ab]e of tui'uinga mill, were'reserved by the "Landsman,"
or landh)rd, in his sales to the settlers; or, because it was
discovered or first settled upcm by Casper Landsman, whose
name is found in our old church records. These two streams
join in Fritz's mill-pond. At this point the Rhinebeck
IV INTRODUCTORY.
creek terminates, and from thence to the river it is Lands-
man's creek, and was Beekman's property. A short
distance below the junction, it fails over a rocky precipice
sixty feet high, and when it is full forms a beautiful cascade
in a deep and picturesque dell, in full view from the high-
way, called by a Rhinebeck poet the ' ' Buco Bush ' ' (Beech-
wood) Falls. This creek at one time turned a grist and saw-
mill at the river ; a grist-mill and woolen factory in Fox
Hollow ; a paper mill at the falls ; a saw-mill, an oil mill,
and a woollen factory at the Junction ; a grist-mill west of
the post-road, liuilt by General Richard Montgomery ; a
grist mill and woollen factory east of the post-road ; a grist-
mill east of the village, known as Isaac Davis' mill ; a saw-
mill and Schuyler's woollen, factory further east ; and
Rutsen's grist and saw-mill at Mrs. Miller's place. Of
these mills, the Fox HoUovv^ mill burned many years ago,
the paper mill at the falls later, Ludekke's mill at the
junction, and the two mills at the post-road a few years ago.
A grist and saw-mill at the junction are all that are left to
the town. The Sawkill in Red Hook was so named, because
the first use made of it was to turn saw-mills. It at one
time turned Judge Livingstone' s mill at the river ; General
Armstrong's mill at Cedar Hill; Van Benthuysen's mill,
and a woollen factory in the same place ; the Chancellor' s
mill, now Hendrick's mill, in the interior ; and Robert G.
Livingston's mill on the Rock City branch. Gen. Arm-
strong's and, the Chancellor's mills, we Vielieve, are maintain-
ing a feeble existence. The White Clay creek is so-called
])ecause it runs through, or from a layer of white clay
somewhere. This creek at one time had Jannetje Bradt's
mill at the mouth. Park's mill at Myersville, Cook' s factory,
and Zachariah Hoffman's mill. It is doing very little, if
anvthing, in the milling line now. These creeks have thus
INTKODUOTORY. V
all lost their value to the towns, which have become simple
agricultural communities, with sumptuous country seats on
the banks of the Hudson ; well-stocked retail dry-goods and
grocery stores ; skillful mechanics of all kinds ; learned and
eloquent ministers of the Gospel of different orthodox
denominations ; and a full supply of lawyers and doctors,
in all the post villages and hamlets.
Before the invention of steamboats, when all the work on
the river, in the conveyance of freight and passengers, was
done by the slooj:)s, the post-road carried a lively opposi-
tion to the river ; and after the invention of the steamboat,
when the Winter closed the river, the post-road carried the
mail and all the freight and passengers between New York
and Albany, and the growing /:'ities North and West ; and
the villages along the line knew something of life and
business. But now all is changed. The railroad knows no
Winter or Summer ; it maintains an unceasing draft on
the life-blood of the small towns for the benefit of the
larger ; and hence there is a dark future for all the
country villages that have not the facilities and advan-
tages of location foi' the conduct of profitable manufactur-
ing enterprises.
Of the Hudson River Railroad, eight miles and fourteen
one-hundredths are in Rhinebeck ; of the Rhinebeck and
Connecticut, five miles and five-sixteenths. The assessed
value of the real estate in the town is $3,152,348; of the
personal estate, $450,460. The number of people in the
town is 3,905 ; of taxable people, 716. The aggregate State
tax against all the taxable property in the town, in this
year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and eighty,
is $23,045.00.
pi^Te^Y 0F ^PINEBECK,
DUTCHESS COUNTY, N. Y.
CHAPTER I.
INDIAN DEEDS FOR LANDS IN RHINEBECK.
The following, in English, in a hand very hard to read, is
a record found in book A A, opened in 1685, in the office of
the Ulster County Clerk, in Kingston. It is the first Indian
deed for lands in Rhinebeck :
" Translated. — It is acknowledged by these presents that
upon the 8th day of June, 1686, in the presence of the magis-
trates, have Aran Kee, Kreme Much, and Korra Kee, young
Indians, appeared, the which do acknowledge to have sold to
Gerrit Artsen, Arie Rosa and Jan Elton a certain parcell of
land, lying upon the east shore, right over against the mouth
of the Redout Creek, bounded between a small creek and the
river, the which said creek is sold to the purchasers. The
bounds of the said land beginneth at the parting of the lands
of Henry Kip, and by a small creek called, in the Indian speech,
Quanelos ; and then runs right through to a great oak tree, marked
and scored by the Indians ; then runs south to where the upper-
most creek comes into the same ; and then by the said creek to
the river ; for which the purchasers promise to pay to the abo-
riginal sellers, or cause to be paid, as follows: Six buffaloes,
four blankets, five kettels, four guns, five horns, five axes, ten
kans of powder, eight shirts, eight pairs of stockings, forty
fathoms of wampum, or sewant, two drawing knives, two adzes,
ten knives, half anker rum, one frying pan ; which payment
shall and must be made on the ist of November next ensuing ;
8
HISTORY OF rhinp:i;kc'k.
and with the payment the Indians are bound to give a free
transport and hcense unto them, the which both parties promise
to adhere to. The day and year as above said.
His
Aran w Kee,
mark.
His
Kreme o Much,
mark.
His
KoRRA — Kee.
mark.
Gerrit Artsen,
Arte Roosa,
Jan Elton.
/// tJic presence of us Magistrates :
Benjamin PRcn^oosT,
His
Jan X JORKEN,
mark.
His
Henry x Elison.
mark.
" Upon ditto the sale of the land the same Indians acknow-
ledge to have given unto Gerrit Artsen, Arie Rosa and Jan
Elton a valley situate eastward from the land bought by them,
named Mansakenning,* and a path to the same, upon approba-
tion of his honor, on the 8th day of June, 1686, Kingston.
His
Aran w Kee,
mark.
His
Kreme o Much,
mark.
His
Korra — Kee.
• mark.
/;/ the presence of us Coinniissiouers :
Benjamin Provoost,
His
Jan X Jorken.
murk.
His
Henry x Elison."
mark.
* This meadow, called Mansakenning by the Indians, is now known as Jaco-
myntie's Fly, probably because this was the name of the wife of Jan Eltinge, who
was at one time the owner of the Fly ; conveyed it to Henr>' Beckman in 16S9, who
conveyed it back to his heirs in 1705.
ROVAI, PATENT TO (IKRKIT ARTSEN & CO. 9
The second, and only other Indian deed, is to Hendrick
Kip. It is not on record in the Ulster County Clerk's Office.
It states no consideration or boundaries. What purports to be
the original deed is in the possession of William Hergh Kip,
Esq., of this town. It is in English, and, we think, in the same
handwriting as the record of the deed to Artsen, Rosa and
Elton, in the Kingston book. It is as follows :
" We, the under written Ankony, one of ye Esopus In-
dians, and Anamaton, and Calycoon, one of the Esopus Sa-
chams, do acknowledge to have received of Henry Kip, of
Kingston, full satisfaction for a parcell of land lying over
against the Redout kill, on the north side of Arie Rosa, on the
river, which is received by me, Ankony, Anamaton and Caly-
coon, in full satisfaction for the above said lands. In witness
whereof, have hereunto set our hands, this 28th day of July,
1686.
The mark of w Ankonv,
The mark of (•) ANAMATON.
Testis : The mark of U Caiaxoon.
Henry Pawlinc;."
The land conveyed to Artsen, Rosa and Elton by the first
deed lies below a line run due east from the river where it is en-
tered by the small creek between the' Radcliff and Hutton
premises, to the Rhinebeck creek, and includes all that lies be-
tween the said creek and river to Vanderburgh's cove. The
land conveyed to the Kips by the second deed lies on the north
of this tract, including all between the said creek and river to a
line run due west to the river from the Hog bridge. The Art-
sen antedates the Kip deed by forty-eight days ; but, one refer-
ring to the other, the lands were doubtless purchased from the
Indians on the same day, with the understanding that they
were to be covered by the same Royal Patent, the full text of
which is in the language following:
THE ROYAL PATENT.
" Thomas Dougan, Captain-General and Governor-in-Chiefe
in and over the Province of New York and Territoryes depend-
ing thereon in America, under his most sacred Majesty, James,
lO HISTORY OK RHINEBECK.
the second, by the grace of God King of England, Scotland,
France and Ireland, Defender of the faith, &c. To all to whom
these presents shall come sendeth greeting. Whereas, Gerrit
Arsen, Arrian Rose, John Elton, Hendrick Kipp, and Jacob
Kipp, by vertue of my lycense, consent and approbation, have
purchased of and from the Indians, natural owners and possess-
ors of the same, a certain parcell of land lying on the east side
of Hudson's river, in the Dutchess' County, over against the
Rondout Kill, beginning at a certain marked tree at the river
side ; from thence running up on a direct line eastward two
hundred and seventy Rodds to a certain small creek ; thence
along the said creek southwesterly seven hundred ninety and
four Rodds ; and thence westerly along the said creek to the
river, containing twelve hundred acres, or thereabout. And.
Whereas, the said Gerrit Arsen, Arrian Rose, John Elton, Hen-
drick Kipp and Jacob Kipp have made their requests unto
me, that I would, on behalf of his Majesty, grant and confirm
unto them, the said Gerrit Arsen, Arrian Rose, John Elton,
Hendrick Kipp and Jacob Kipp, their heirs and assigns,
the before mentioned parcell of land and premises, with
the appurtenances: Know ye that by vertue of my commis-
sion, and authority from his most sacred Majesty, and power in
me being and residing, in consideration of the quitt-rent and
chiefe rent herein after reserved, and divers other good and law-
ful considerations me thereunto moveing, I have given, granted
and confirmed, and by these presents do hereby give, grant and
confirm unto the said Gerrit Arsen, Arrian Rose, John Elton,
Hendrick Kipp and Jacob Kipp, their heirs and assigns forever,
all the before recited parcell of land and premises, with all and
every the appurtenances, together with all and singular lands,
meadows, woods, moors, marshes, waters, hunting, hawking,
fishing and fowling, and all other proffitts. advantages, commodi-
tys, emoluments and hereditaments to the said parcel of land
and premises belonging, or in anywise appertaining. 7o have
and to hold the said parcell of land and premises, with all and
singular, the hereditaments and appurtenances, unto the said
Gerrit Arsen, Arrian Rose, John Elton, Hendrick Kipp and
Jacob Kipp, their heirs and assigns, to the only proper use and
ROVAI. I'A'IEN'T TO (iKRRlT ARISEN & CO. II
behoof of them, the said Gerrit Arsen. Arrian Rose, John El-
ton, Hendrick Kipp and Jacob Kipp, their heirs and assigns
forever. To be holden of his most sacred Majesty, his heirs
and successors, in free and common socage, according to the
tenure of East Greenwich, in the county of Kent, in his Majes-
ty's Kingdome of England, yeelding, rendering and paying
therefor unto his said Majesty, his heirs and successors, forever,
yearly, and every year, the quantity of eight bushels of good,
sweet, merchantable winter wheat, as a quitt rent, to be deliv-
ered at the city of New York, unto such ofificer or ofificers as
shall from time to time be impowered to receive the same, in
lieue. place and stead of all service due, and demand whatso-
ever. In testimony whereof I have signed these presents with
my hand writing, and caused the same to be recorded in the
Secretary's office, and the seal of this his Majesty's province to
be thereunto affixed, this second day of June, in the fourth
year of his Majesty's reign, and in the year of our Lord, One
Thousand Six Hundred Eighty and Eight.
Thomas Dougan."
endorsements.
" May it Pleas yo^" Exc>'
" The Attorney General has perused this grant and finds
therein nothing prejudicial to your Majesties interests.
" Ex'i'i May 31, 1688." W NicOLLS." '
" Att a councill held at ffortt James, July 28, 1688; Pres-
ent, his Excellency, Major Antho: Brockholls, Major Baxter,
Major Phillips, Major Cortlandt, Coll. Bayard, this pattent was
approved of.
Geo. Brewerton."
" Recorded in the Secretary's office for the province of
New York, in Lib. No. 2, begun 1686, Page 349 &c
" Exad. by GEO. Brewerton."
The original of this patent fell into the hands of the Rosa
family, and descended from them, through the Van Elten fam-
ily, to John N. Cramer, from whom it passed into the possession
12 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
of the late Hon. William Kelly, whose lands are all within the
limits of the territory which it conv^eyed. It is of parchment,
perfectly preserved, and has a seal four inches in diameter, en-
closed in a tin box. The lands conveyed by it lie between
Landsmans and Rhinebeck creeks and the river, and extend
from Vanderburgh's cove north to a line drawn directly west
from the Hog bridge to the river.
Holgate, in his genealogy of the Kip family, says : '/ We
find them purchasing from the Indians, on the east side of the
Hudson river, where Rhinebeck now stands, a tract of land ex-
tending four miles along the river and several miles inland. The
original deed, still preserved, is dated July 28, 1686, and signed
by three Indian chiefs — Ankony, Anamaton, and Callicoon.
Two years after, a royal patent, dated June 2, 1688, was
granted by his excellency, Thomas Dougan, governor of New
New York, under the name of the Manor of Kipsberg, in con-
firmation of the Indian title." It is very evident Mr. Holgate
had not read the royal patent, and had no knowledge of the
Indian deed to Artsen, Rosa and Elton when he penned these
lines. The royal patent did not cover the land where Rhine-
beck now stands, and was not a manorial grant.
There is no evidence that the lands conveyed by this pat-
ent were occupied by the owners before the year 1700. They
were divided among the partners on the 26th of May, 1702, by
deeds to each from all the others, on record in the office of the
Ulster County Clerk, in Kingston. Of the lands purchased
from the Indians by the Kips, Hendrick Kip took two-thirds of
his share on the south and one-third on the north of the tract,
Jacob taking his share in one lot between Hendrick's two par-
cels. Having set over to the Kips their share, the other three
partners divided theirs into six parcels, and assigned two to
each. In this assignment, lots one and four became the prop-
erty of Arie Rosa ; two and five of Roeloff, oldest son of John
Elton, deceased ; and three and six of Gerrit Artsen.
A small stone house was built on Hendrick Kip's south
lot, with what are supposed to be two portholes under the
eaves, looking toward the river. This house has a lintel on the
east side, of stone, with the inscription distinctly cut, " Ao
IIENDRICK AND JACOB KII'PS MOUSES. I3
I7(X) HK AK." These are evidently the initials of Hendrick
Kip and Annatje Kip, his wife ; and the house was evidently
built by Hendrick in this year. And this is the house between
the village of Rhinebeck and the river which Benson J. Los-
sing says was built by William Beekman, the first settler,
and of which Martha J. Lamb, the historian of New York,
says : " William Beekman purchased all the region of Rhine-
beck from the Indians, and built a small stone house, which
is still standing." The house at the Long Dock, now the
property of Frederick G. Cotting, is near the south side of the
land which fell to Jacob Kip. The stone part of this house
has in the front wall a stone, very distinctly inscribed, " 1708.'
This was, doubtless, Jacob Kip's house, built in this year.
On the 2 1st day of April, in the year 1709, Gerrit Artsen,
of Kingston, sold to his son. Evert Van Wagenen, of Dutchess
County, husbandman, for seventy pounds, " all that certain
tract, or parcel of land, situate, lying and being in Dutchess
county * * to the south of the land of ye Kips, and to the
north of ye land of the heirs of Jan Elting, to the east of ye
Hudson river, and to the west of a small creek; it being ye lot
number six, counted ye half of ye land belongeth to ye said
Gerrit Artsen, to have and to hold the said parcell of land with
all and eveiy its appurtenances thereunto belonging, * ^' "
unto the said Evert Van Wagenen, his heirs and assigns forever ;
* * "" the said Evert Van Wagenen to pay yearly, and
every year, the tenth part of the quit rent mentioned in ye
general patent." Signed, sealed and delivered by Gerrit Art-
sen, on the 2 1st day of April, 1709, in presence of Conraat El-
mendorp. Jacobus Elmendorp and D. Mayer, in Kingston, Ul-
ster County. Recorded in Ulster County.
This deed was for the land of which the Hutton farm is
part. It lay " right over against the mouth of the Redout
creek," and thus very convenient to the older Kingston settle-
ment.
On the loth day of March, 1710-1, Arie Roosa sold to
Evert Roosa, for sixty pounds, lot number four ; the said Evert
Roosa to pay one tenth part of the quit rent. Witnesses pres-
ent— Laurens Osterhout, Evert Van Wagenen, W. Wattingham.
14 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
On the nth day of March, 1710-1, Arie Roosa sold to
Laurens Osterhout, of Hurly, for sixty pounds, lot number one,
" it being the south end of the patent," he to pay one-tenth of
the annual quit rent. Witnesses present — Mattys Ten Eyck,
Evert Roosa and W. Wattingham. Recorded in Ulster County.
On the 1st day of April, 1710, Arie Roosa sold to Henry
Beekman, Jr., six acres of lot number one, for six pounds, the
deed for which reads as follows : " Beginning at a certain
marked tree at the brink of the mill-creek and a stone set in
the ground at the foot of said tree, marked HB on the south
side, and AR on the north side of said stone, at a point about
one hundred yards above the mill-dam, now built, in the pos-
session of his father, Henry Beekman ; and thence westerly to
another marked tree and stone, marked as aforesaid, on the
south side of a hollow gap ; and from thence southwesterly
along several marked trees and stones set and marked HB and
AR, to the river ; and from thence along the bank of the
river, easterly and northeasterly, to the mill-creek ; and along
said creek to the place of beginning."
The inference from this language is that the old Tillotson
mill, or one on the same site, was built by the elder Henr}'
Beekman, as early as 17 10, on land purchased from Arie Roosa.
It was located near the river, where grain could be taken to it
and flour away from it by water as well as by land. It was thus
serviceable to settlements on both sides of the river; and,
whether viewed with relation to its own interests, or those of
the settlements to be served, was well located. The settlers of
new countries must be preceded by the grist and saw mill, or
take them with them. This was certainly one of the first mills
— if not quite the first mill — erected in Dutchess County ; and
was erected on the borders of a wilderness whose very few
white settlers were confined to the shores of the river, and, on
the east side, to the patent of Arie Roosa and company.
The partition deeds set forth that if either of the partners
" shall see cause to build a mill or mills, on ye above mentioned
creek, on either of said lots of ground, that then, and in such
case, there shall be and remain two acres of ground in general
to ye proper use and benefit of such mill or mills, wherein all
thp: first mp:ntion of " kipsbf:rgen." 15
ye above said five partners, their heirs and assigns, are equally
to be concerned.'' The mills thus provided for were never
built.
KIPSBERGEN.
None of the deeds we have considered has named " Kips-
bergen " as the residence of either of the parties interested.
They have named Dutchess County only. We meet the name
for the first time in 1712, in a deed from Laurens Osterhout,
the owner of lot number one, the south end of the patent, to
Jacobus Van Elten, for a lot of land in Harly, Ulster County,
wherein he refers to himself as a resident of " Kipsbergen, in
Dutchess County." Jan Elton, of the five partners, had mar-
ried a widow with four children, by whom he had five. She
was thus the mother of nine children at his death. In his will,
he left half of his property to his five, and the other half to his
wife's nine children. In this way, his lot number two of the
patent was divided into five, and his lot» number five into nine
shares. In 17 14, Gerrit Artsen became the owner by purchase
from the heirs of the whole of number two, and five-ninths of
number five — the shares which fell to Elton's children. He
thus became the owner of nearly two-thirds of the land covered
by the Indian deed to Artsen, Rosa and Elton. In 17 16 he
sold to his son-in-law, Hendricus Hermance, all the land in-
cluded in number three, and referred to it as part of the land
called " Kipsbergen," " bounded northerly by lot number four,
easterly by a creek on which Henry Beekman's corn mill stands,
southerly by lot number two, and westerly by Hudson's river."
This lot is now included in the Ellerslie estate. The record of
the marriage of Roeloff Kip to Sarah Dumon, on the 9th of
January, 1721, says: "He was from Kipsbergen, she from
Kingston." The record of the marriage of Nicholas Van Wag-
enen to Maria Kip, on the 31st of November, 1731, says they
were " both born and living in Kipsbergen." It is thus cer-
tain the name was applied to the whole patent from 1712 to
1 73 1, and that at the latter date the name of Rhinebeck had
not been applied, where Peter A. Jay says William Beekman
settled several poor families from the banks of the Rhine, in
the autumn of 1647, "and founded the little village of Rhine-
1 6 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
beck." The house which Lossing and Mrs. Lamb say was built
by WilHam Beekman, in 1647, became the property of his
grandson, Henry, by an exchange of lands with Hendrick Kip,
the son of Hendrick, the patentee, in 1726. The conveyance
says it is " the place where the said Hendrick now resides, and
known by the name of Kipsbergen." We presume this name
was given to the tract because the Kips, though the owners of
but two-fifths of the land, were the first to settle upon it ; and,
probably, also, because the name Kip blended more euphoni-
ously with Bergen than either of the others. It is very certain
there was never a " Manor of Kipsbergen " in the present town
of Rhinebeck.
The Hermance House became the Beekman House when
it became the property of Henry Beekman, the second, whose
daughter — not granddaughter — became the mother of Chancel-
lor Livingston. The farm obtained from Hendrick Kip by
Henry Beekman in this purchase and exchange contained less
than two hundred acres ; and it was not through this purchase
that the lands of Rhinebeck passed into the Livingston family,
as Mr. Holgate assumed.
CHAPTER IL
THE BEEKMAN PATENT.
There is no record of lands purchased from the Indians in
1647, or at any other time, by William Beekman, in what is now
the town of Rhinebeck. The "Calendar of Land Papers" tells
us that in 1695 Henry Beekman, the son of William, petitioned
the Government for a patent for land in Dutchess County, lying
opposite Esopus Creek, and known by the name of Sepeskenot.
On the 22d of April, 1697, he obtained a patent for these lands,
which says it is for lands " lying to the north of Hendrick Kip,
and alongst Hudson's river, to the bounds of Major Peter
Schuyler, containing in length about four miles, and in breadth
into the woods as far as the bounds of the said Major Schuy-
ler." He was to pay therefor yearly and every year forever,
next and after the expiration of seven years * * * upon
the first day of annunciation (the 25th of March,) at the City
THE PATENT TO IIENRV BEEKMAN. IJ
of New York, the yearly rent of forty shillings. Dated April
22, 1697.
This patent did not define the boundaries of the lands as
fully and accurately as Mr. Beekman desired, and he obtained
another in the place of it, on the 25th of June, 1703. This new
patent sets forth the boundaries as follows :
" All that tract of land in Dutchess County aforesaid, situ-
ate, lying and being on the east side of Hudson's river, begin-
ning at a place called by the Indians, Quaningquious, over
against the Klyne Sopus effly, being the north bounds of the
lands called Pawling's purchase ; from thence extending north-
erly by the side of the Hudson's river aforesaid, until it comes
to a stone creek, over against the Kallcoon Hoek, which is the
southerly bounds of the land of Colonel Peter Schuyler : from
thence so far east as to reach a certain pond called by the In-
dians, Waraughkeemeek ; and from thence extending southerly
by a line parallel to Hudson's river aforesaid until a line run
from the place where first began easterly into the woods does
meet the said parallel line. Bounded westerly by the Hudson's
river, northerly by the lands of the said Peter Schuyler, east-
terly by the said parallel line, and southerly by the line drawn
from the place where it was first begun, and meeting the said
parallel line, which is the northern bounds of the said land be-
fore called Pawling's purcha::.e."
Now this patent by its terms carried Henry Beekman's
lands north to the point where the Sawkill enters the river —
that is, to the creek between the Bard and Barton premises, in
Red Hook — and included the lands patented to Arie Roosa &
Co., called Kipsbergen ; and thus took in more than Beekman
was entitled to, or able to hold. Schuyler pushed him down to
the little creek called "Stein Valetie," the point on the river
which divides the present towns of Rhinebeck and Red Hook ;
and we think the elder Henry Beekman, the patentee, never as-
serted a claim to the land owned by the Roosa & Co. patentees.
But Henry, the son, evidently pretended to have a claim to the
whole, or part of the land ; and when he procured the land
which fell to the share of Hendrick Kipp, the son, by an ex-
change of lands therefor in his purchase from Peek De Witt,
I 8 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
in the Schuyler patent, he went through the formahty of waiv-
ing his claim in the instrument which follows :
" Know all christian people to whom these present writings
shall or may come, that I, Henry Beekman, of Dutchess county, in
the province of New York, for divers good causes and considera-
tions him thereunto moving, hath remised, released and forever
quit claimed, and by these presents for himself and his heirs doth
fully, clearly and absolutely remise, release and forever quit
claim unto Jacob Kipp, Mathias Sleight, Evert Van Wagenen,
Evert Roosa, Henricus Heermance, Goose Van Wagenen, Bar-
ent Van Wagenen and Lawrens Osterhout, all of said Dutchess
county and province of New York, yeomen, in their full and
peaceable possession, and seizen, and to their heirs and assigns
forever, all such right, estate, interest and demand whatsoever,
as he the said Henry Beekman had or ought to have of in or to
all that certain tract or parcel of land in Dutchess county which
tract of land is heretofore granted to captain Arie Roosa, John
Eltinge and others in company, cituating and being over against
the Rondout Kill * * * containing the quantity of land
as it is comprehending and lays within its boundaries according
to the express words of said pattint grainted as above said, and
in the year of our Lord one thousand six hundred and eighty-
eight ( Alway acceptd, and it is hereby forever reserved to the
said Henry Beekman, his heirs, exects, adminsts, or assigns, or
to any of them, all such right title clame and demand or posses-
sion which he, the said Henry Beekman, hath and ought to have
in said pattint by vertue of such title and conferences from and
under hand and seal of Hendrick Kip, and all other assurances,
divisions and contracts made over and confirmed to the said
Henry Beekman. which of right did to the said Hendrick Kip
belong as his inheritance from his father, Hendrick Kip, de-
ceased, one of ye partners of ye above resighted patin, all which
right so belonging heretofore to the said Hendrick Kip is here-
by excluded by these presents) " * " Dated: March 19,
1726. Witnessed by Jacob Kip, jr. and William Van Vreden-
burgh, jr."
We have given the substance of the instrument. It is all in
the handwriting of Henrj- Beekman, and is doubtless his own
THE DEED TO WILLIAM TRAPMAGEN. I9
composition. It was never recorded. We have never seen the
deed from Hendrick Kip, the son, to Henry Beekman for the
Heermance premises, given in 1726. It may be that Henry
Beekman claimed all the land held by the partners over and
above the twelve hundred acres named in the patent, and that
he waived the claim for some consideration named in the con-
veyance from Kip. But Beekman, and all the old patentees,
claimed and held more land than they bargained for. Mrs.
Lamb says a boy once asked a farmer if there was any land in
the moon. He answered that he did not know, but, if there was,
it would be found that Henry Beekman had a patent for it.
But we have no evidence that Henry Beekman, the father,
ever disputed the validity of the Artsen patent, or claimed any
part of the land covered by it. On the 17th of February, 1711,
he issued a deed to William Traphagen, for lands beginning at
a plain of said colonel Henry Beekman, on the east side of a
certain small run of water, by some people, called Kipskill,
" parting it from the lands of Hendrick Kip, Jacob Kip and Ger-
rit Artsen ; bounded on the south by Landsman's Kill, where
both the said Kills do meet and join together in one, making a
point. " Neither Kipsbergen or Rhinebeck is named in this
deed, and the Flats are as yet simply " a plain of the said Col.
Henry Beekman."
RHINEBECK.
When Colonel Robert Hunter came from England, in 1710,
to take the governorship of the province of New York, he
brought with him about four thousand Germans from the Palat-
inate, on the Rhine. An account of these people settled on
Hudson's river, rendered to the British government by Govern-
or Hunter, on the 7th of August, 171 8, placed thirty-five famil-
ies, containing one hundred and forty persons, besides the
widows and children, in Rhinebeck. In what year these people
came on to Beekman's patent, we do not with certainty know ;
but it is rendered quite certain, it was they who gave the name
to the town.
On the 29th of November, 17 14, Henry Beekman, the eld-
er, sold to Peter and William Ostrander a tract of one hundred
and twenty-four acres of land, " the whole being bounded to the
northwest by a hill ; to the northeast by the lands of said Beek-
20 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
man laid out for tJic High Dutchers." And this deed fur-
ther describes these lands as lying " in Dutchess County, at
Ryn Beek. " Part of this land is now included in the farm of
Thomas Reed. The other part reached the post-road, is now
the property of William Van Steenburgh, and was owned by
Dr. Ananias Cooper, before the Revolution, who built the brick
and stone house now thereon, at the post-road, still known as
the " Cooper House." On the 28th of February, 1715, Henry
Beekman gave to Jacob Kip, " of Kipsbergen," a deed for eighty-
nine acres of land in Dutchess County, at Ryn Beek. This land
joined that of the Ostranders, and embraced the land about the
Hog Bridge, and doubtless the homesteads of Chas. I. Kramer
and William Van Steenburgh, and a part of the Hoffman farm.
The deed says, " The said Beekman has further bargained and
sold unto ye aforesaid Kip * ''^ * all the high land that lies
between ye said Jacob Kip's east bounds or lyne to ye southern
bounds of Peter and William Ostrander." The survey for these
lands was made by John Beatty, Deputy Surveyor, November
29, 1714; and he says, on his map: "On ye bounds of ye said
Coll. Beekman, called Reinebaik, in Dutchess County."
These "High Dutchers" were the Palatines placed in
Rhinebeck by Governer Hunter's report in 1718, and the lands
laid out for them lay north of the Hog bridge, and principally
about the old German Reformed Church at Pinck's Corner.
The name was confined to these lands for many years by the
early settlers, and we think it was written for the first time in
the deed to Peter and William Ostrander, in 17 14. They did
not get their deeds until (October 20, 1718, two years after the
death of Henry Beekman, the patentee. We have seen about a
dozen of these deeds, all bearing this date. A census of the
county, taken in 17 14, found but sixty-seven heads of families
in the county. VVe have the names of these, and easily distin-
guish those located in what are now Rhinebeck and Red Hook.
They are all Holland and Huguenot, and thus tell us that the
Palatine founders of Rhinebeck had not taken possession of
their lands when this census was taken. They probably came
in in 171 5.
The name of the Kips was given to the whole of the grant
THE "HIGH DUTCHERS." 21
to Artsen and Co. ; and it is possible Beekman intended Rein
Beek should apply to the whole of his ; but it is certain this did _
not take place at once. When the German Reformers bought
out the interest of the Lutherans in the old Rhinebeck Church
in 1729, in the writings from the one to the other, the church was
located at " Rhynbeek." When the lands on the Flats were laid
out for the "Low Butchers " or Hollanders, in 1730, they were de.
scribed as being " in Dutchess County, in the North ward, situated
on the southwesterly side of a large plain near the now grist-mill
of the said Henry Beekman." Nothing was said of Rhinebeck.
Apparently, the name was confined to the land laid out for the
High Butchers until the organization of the precinct in 1734,
which took in all of " Pawling's purchase " on the south, then
called Staatsburgh ; all of the present town of Red Hook, on
the north ; and all of the patent of Gerrit Artsen & Co. ; which
from thenceforth ceased to be Kipsbergen. And to-day the
people about the country still distinguish between Rhinebeck
and the Flats. The road from Mrs. Mary R. Meller's to Pink's
corner is still the road to Rhinebeck. St. Peter's Lutheran
Church is the Rhinebeck Church, while the Reformed Butch is
still the church on the Flats. It is thus certain that Peter A.
Jay, Benson J. Lossing, and Martha J. Lamb were not only
mistaken as to the time, when, but also as to the place where,
and the person by whom, Rhinebeck was founded.
Henry Beekman, the patentee, died in 1716, apparently
w^ithout a will; his wife was living in 1724; in 1713, he gave a
deed to his son, Henry, for all of his Rhinebeck patent lying
south of a line, run from the junction of Landsman's and Rhine-
beck creeks in the Saw-mill pond, directly east to the end of
the patent, and included the mill at the mouth of Landsman's
creek. In 1737, on the 30th of August, the balance of the pat-
ent was divided between him and his two sisters. For the first
step a middle line was run from the Saw-mill pond to Schuyler's
Fly, on the north ; from this line as a base the land was divided
into six parts, intended to be equal, by lines to follow the an-
gle of the Schuyler patent, those on the west reaching the river,
and those on the east extending to the end of the patent.
This gave to each of the parties a lot fronting on the river. In
22 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
this division, Nos. i and 6 fell to Henr>' ; 2 and 5 to Catherine,
wife, first of John Rutsen, and now of Albert Pawling ; 3 and 4
to Cornelia, wife of Gilbert Livingston. No. i included the
Flats " where Rhinebeck now stands," which thus became the
property of Henry Beekman, the second. {Sec Map.)
CHAPTER HI.
THE TOWN OF RED HOOK.
Having purchased from the Indians the land lying over
against Magdalene, now Cruger's Island, Col. Peter Schuyler ob-
tained a patent therefor from Governor Thomas Dongan on the 2d
of June, 1688, in which the boundaries are thus defined : " Situate,
lying and being on the east side of Hudson's river in Dutchess
County, over against Magdalene Island, beginning at a certain
creek called Metambesem ; thence running easterly to the south-
most part of a certain meadow called Tanquashqueick ; and
from that meadow easterly to a certain small lake or pond
called Waraughkameek ; from thence northerly so far till upon
a due east and west line it reaches over against the Sawyer's
creek ; from thence due west to the Hudson's river aforesaid ;
and from thence southerly along the said river to the said
creek called Metambesem." This deed, according to the " Cal-
endar of Land Papers recorded in the Secretary of State's
offtce, at Albany," was not recorded until the 25th of June,
1787, one hundred years after it had been obtained. A con-
firmatory patent obtained on the 7th of November, 1704, the
calendar tells us, was at once recorded in Vol. 3 of patents,
page 184.
An old map, in the possession of Colonel Henry B. Arm-
strong, tells us that the creek called Metambesem is now the
Sawkill, entering the river between Montgomery Place and the
Bard premises ; that the meadow, called Tanquashqueick, was
Schuyler's, and is now generally known as Radclif1"'s Fly ; and
that Waraughkameek is now the " Ferer Cot," which means the
Pine Swamp, mainly on the premises of the late Albert Snyder,
three miles east of the village of Upper Red Hook. Now, con-
ceding that the Sawkill was the creek named Metambesem by
the Indians, the patent erred in making it the southern limit of
THE StUnVLER PATENT. 23
Peter Schuyler's lands ; they came down to the " Stein Valetie "
(Little Stone Falls), somewhere on the premises of Francis H.
Delano, Esq.
In 1689, the year after he had obtained the grant, Peter
Schuyler sold one-half of what he estimated to be one-fourth of
his patent to Harme Gansevoort, a brewer, of Albany. The
fourth of the patent out of which this sale was made lay north
of a line run due east from a point on the river opposite the
south end of Slipstein Island (the small island north of Cruger's).
On the 1st of May, 1704, Harme Gansevoort sold his moiety of
this part of the patent to Lawrence, Cornelius, Evert, and Peter
Knickerbacker, of Dutchess County; Anthony Bogardus, of the
city of Albany, and Janetje, his wife ; Jan Vosburgh, of Dutch-
ess County, and Cornelia, his wife ; sons and daughters of Harme
Jans Knickerbacker, late of Dutchess County, deceased, for one
hundred and fifty pounds.
In 1722, Peter Schuyler had this upper fourth of his patent
carefully surveyed, and divided into thirteen lots. Of these, he
set seven over to the above named Knickerbackers, retaining
the six in his own possession. What he ultimately did with
these we have not learned. The other three-fourths of his
patent he sold to Tierk De Witt, of Ulster County, Joachem
Staats, of the manor of Rensselaerswick, and Barent Van Ben-
thuysen,of Dutchess County. A partition deed and map in the
possession of Col. H. B. Armstrong show the disposition ulti-
mately made of his patent by Col. Peter Schuyler. The deed
reads as follows :
" Barent Staats, of the manor of Renselaerswick, of the coun-
ty of Albany, in the province of New York in America, of the
first part : Barent Van Benthuysen, of Dutchess County in the
said county and province, yeoman, of the second part ; and
Henry Beekman, of the said Dutchess County, gentleman, of
the third part. Whereas, Coll. Peter Schuyler, late of ye coun-
ty of Albany, deceased, Tierk De Witt, late of Ulster county,
deceased, and Joachem Staats, late of the said manor of Rense-
laerswick, deceased, were partners to the purchase of that cer-
tain tract or parcell of land, situate, lying and being in the said
Dutchess County, beginning at a certain creek called Metambe-
24 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
sem, over against Calkoenhoek ; thence running easterly to the
southmost part of a certain meadow called Tanquashqueak ; and
from that meadow easterly to a certain small lake or pond,
called Warachkameek ; and from thence northerly so far till upon
a due east and west line it reaches over against the south end of
the island in Hudson's river called and known by the name of
Slipsteen Island ; thence southward along the east side of said
river to the creek called Metambesem. * * The said tract
of land * * * was by letters patent from Coll. Thomas
Dougan, heretofore Lieutenant Governor of the said province,
granted unto the said Peter Sehuyler, as by said patent bearing
date the second day of June, 1688, and since confirmed by an-
other patent, under the broad seal of the said province, from
Edward, Viscount Cornbury, some time governor of the said
province, bearing date the 7th day of November, 1704. And
whereas the said Tierk De Witt, in his life time, by virtue of a
conveyance from the said Peter Schuyler of one-third part of
the above recited tract or parcell of land, did make and convey
that same third part of the said tract or parcell of land unto
his son. Peck De Witt, who by another instrument under his
hand and seal hath conveyed the same unto the said Henry
Beekman, to have and to hold the said third part of the said
tract or parcell of land, to him, the said Beekman, his heirs and
assigns forever, except any part in the meadow called Magda-
lene Islands Vly, that lyeth between the main shore and the
said Magdalene Island ; which said third part of the said tract
or parcell of land is aftenvards confirmed and released unto them
by indentures with the said Peter Schuyler, bearing date the
eleventh day of February, 1718-19. * * And whereas the said
Peter Schuyler by other indentures executed between him and the
said Barent Staats, son and heir of Joachem Staats, bearing date
the eleventh day of February, 1718-19, whereby the said Peter
Schuyler granted, released and confirmed unto the said Barent
Staats for himself and others, the children of the said Joachem
Staats, deceased, another third part of the said above recited
tract of land, and of the above mentioned meadow, called Mag-
dalene Islands" Vly, under such quit rent as in the said indent-
ure is specified.- * * * The other third part of the said
FINAL PARTITION Oh I'HE SCHUYLER PATENT. 2$
tract or parcell of land the said Peter Schuyler hath sold and
delivered to the said Barent Van Benthuysen, his heirs and as-
signs forever. Now this indendure witnesseth that the said par-
ties to these presents being now fully minded and agreed that
the aforesaid tract or parcell of land shall be divided and layed
out in lotts as equall and conveniently as may be, in manner as
the same are laid out, delineated, proportioned and ascertained
on the surveys, draft or chart thereof, reference whereunto be-
ing had may now plainly appear."
Tanquashqueick meadow (Schuyler's Vly) was divided into
three parts and disposed of by lot, Barent Staats drawing the
south, Barent Van Benthuysen the middle and Henry Beekman
the north part.
The Sawkill was found to have three falls of water, and
" eight acres of land conveniently located to each fall of water,
being in all twenty-four acres, which creek, falls and twenty-four
acres are reserved, and undivided, and remain as yet in com-
pany between the said parties, each one-third part thereof, for
the use of such saw-mill and saw-mills, grist-mill, or grist-mills,
as at any time hereafter by the said parties, their heirs and as-
signs, shall be thereon erected." For the building of these
mills the parties reserved to themselves the right to enter on
any of the parties' lands not " infenced and improved, and cut
down and have, and carry away timber " for any of the mills
mentioned.
In this final partition and disposition of the Schuyler
patent, Barent Staats acted for himself, and for his brethren,
Abraham, Richard, and Isaac, and sister Elizabeth. The deed
was signed, sealed and delivered in 1725, in presence of Har-
manis Schuyler, Peter Livingston, and Robert Livingston, Jr.
The reservation of the mill sites, and the right to cut tim-
ber therefor on each other's lands, seem to indicate that there
were no mills on the Sawkill in 1725; and the reservation of
the right to pass over each other's lands with teams and wagons,
indicates that there were no highways constructed at this date,
excepting, perhaps, the post-road.
26 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
The deed from Peek DeWitt to Henry Beekman, Jr., bears
date the 9th day of August, 171 5, and reads as follows:
" To all christian people to whom these presents shall or
may come, Peek De Witt, of Dutchess, in the province of New
York, in America, sends greeting. Now know yea that the
said Peek De Witt by and with the consent and good liking of
Maritje, his wife, testified by her signing and sealing of these
presents, for divers good causes him thereunto moving, but
more especially for and in consideration of an exchange of a
certain tract of land lying and being in the county of Ulster, in
the corporation, Kingston, on the south side of the Rondout
creek, above the great fall, in said Rondout creek, and of ten
acres of fly or meadow, lying on the north side of said Rondout
creek, between the fly of John Frere and the fly of Coll. Henry
Beekman, this day conveyed and assured unto the said Peek
De Witt by the said Coll. Henry Beekman, have given, grant-
ed, bargained, sold, released, certified and confirmed * ^'^ *
unto Henry Beekman, jr., of Kingston, in Ulster County, gent,
the just third part of all that certain tract or parcell of land,
situate, lying, and being in Dutchess County, beginning at the
north bounds of the land of the said Coll. Henry Beekman,
and so along Hudson's river to a certain small creek or run of
water to the north of Magdalene's Island and as far into the
woods as the said patent for the said land to Coll. Peter
Schuyler extends, with the just third part of the mill, and mill
creek, and the appurtenances thereunto belonging, together
with all and singular the orchards, buildings, gardens, fencing
and improvements on the same, to have and to hold the said
just third part of the said tract or parcell of land, mill and mill
creek, with all and singular the profits, benefits, advantages,
commodities * * * unto him, the said Henry Beekman,
jr., his heirs and assigns forever. In witness whereof the said
Peek DeWitt, and Maritje, his wife, have hereunto put their
hands and afiixed their seals, in Kingston, this ninth day of
August, in the second year of the reign of our sovereign Lord
George, by the grace of God of Great Brittain, France and
Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith, &c.. Anno Domine,
1715.
THK KIFS AND THEIR LANDS. 2/
"Sealed and delivered in the presence of us,
Hia
Henry Beekman, Peek P. D. W. DeWitt,
mark.
Her
Johannes Wynkoop, Maritie x DeWitt.
mark.
In presence of me, Mattys Jansen.
W. Wattin(;ham, Justice of the Peace."
Recorded in Ulster Co., Liber No. 66, Folio 383, Watting-
ham, clerk.
By this purchase from Peek DeWitt, Henry Beekman, jr.,
obtained five thousand five hundred and forty-one acres of land
on the north of and adjoining the patent of his father, Col.
Henry Beekman, obtained in 1697, which covered all of the
present town of Rhinebeck except the patent of Artsen, Roosa
& Co., heretofore described.
A middle line was run through the three quarters of the
Schuyler patent falling to these three parties, extending from
the Beekman patent to the north quarter assigned to the
Knickerbacker heirs and retained by Schuyler. For his third,
Henry Beekman took both sides of this line; for his third,
Barent Van Benthuysen took the east part of the middle third,
and the west part of the north third, obtaining five thousand
six hundred and fifty-two acres; Barent Staats took the west
part of the middle, and the east part of the north third, and
obtained five thousand six hundred and twelve acres. If
the north quarter, previously disposed of, contained the same
number of acres, the Schuyler patent covered about twenty-two
thousand four hundred acres of land.
CHAPTER IV.
the kips and their lands.
Henry Kip, as we have learned, took two-thirds of his
share of the patent south, and one-third north of Jacob. He
built the old stone house called the Beekman house on the
south lot, in 1700. While he occupied this house, his eldest
son, John, built himself a house on the north lot, and occupied
it until the year 17 16.
John, the eldest son of Hendrick Kip, was baptized at
28 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
Kingston, March 31, 1678. He married Lysbet Van Kleeck,
at Kingston, September 28, 1703. They had children baptized
at Kingston, as follows:
Hendricus, September 3, 1704; Baltus, March 17, 1706;
Baltus, May 23, 1707; Mathew, October 31, 1708; Tryntje,
May 7, 1710; Barent, January 2"], 1712; Annatje, January 24,
1714; Baltus, September 4, 1715; Jacob, January 12, 1718.
On the 26th of March, 17 16, John Kip sold his land to his
uncle Jacob by a deed which describes the premises as follows :
"A certain piece or parcell of land lying and being on the east
side of Hudson's river, beginning at the north bounds of the
said Jacob Kip by said river; then along the river to a market
tree, being the northermost bounds of a pattane belonging to
said Kip and company ; then east, as said pattane mentions, to
a certain krick ; then along said krick to the bounds of said
Jacob Kip ; then along his bounds to the first station."
Signed, Yan Kep, L. S.,
Lysbet Kips, L. S.
In presence of
His
Tunis y Ellise,
mark.
HENDRICK KE]'.
John Crooke, Jur., Justice of peic."
Recorded in Ulster County Clerk's Office, Book 66, pages
J- J*
Catholyntie, daughter of Hendrick Kip, married Mattys
Sleight. They had children baptized as follows :
Mathew, April 29, 171 1 ; Hendricken, November 15, 171 3;
Anna, October 12, 1712 (Hendrick, the patentee, and his wife,
Anna Van Putten, were sponsers at this baptism) ; Hendrickus,
June 9, 1717; Maria, October 16, 1720; John, April 26, 1724;
Tryntie, June 15, 1729; Maria, July 24, 1715 ; Cornelius, April
23, 1727.
Hendrick Kip, the son, married Jacomyntie (Jane or Joan)
New Kirk, September 28, 1715. Their only child on record is
Jannetje, baptised September 23, 1716. We think the Hen-
drick who married Appolonia Van Vradenburgh, and appears
in Rhinebeck records, was his son.
DEED EROM HENRY KIP AND WFEE, 29
A deed from Hendrick Kip and Jacomyntje, his wife, to
Mattys Sleight says, it gives, grants and assigns to him and his
heirs forever, "The one just half, or deemed to be so, by con-
sent, as divided this day, being the one just half of two-thirds
of the land of Hendrick Kip, late of Dutchess County, father
of the said Hendrick, which land was conveyed to said Hen-
drick and Catholyntie, his sister, by their eldest brother, John
Kip, eldest son of Hendrick Kip, deceased ; and by these
presents do fully and absolutely give * * * to Mattys
Sleight, jr., '" * * Beginning on the banks of Hudson's
river, at a stone set in the ground ; from thence running south,
forty-one degrees east, fourteen chains ; thence south, sixty
degrees east, nine chains and a half ; thence north, forty-four
degrees east, seven chains and fifty-seven links, to a marked
stone ; and from thence east, ten degrees and a half south, to
a certain creek, being the creek that goes to Beekman's mill ;
and thence along the said creek as it runs to a marked stone,
being the division line between the said Sleight and Evert Van
Wagenen ; thence along his bounds west, twelve degrees and a
half north, to a marked stone on the banks of the Hudson's
river; then along Hudson's river to the first station; to hold
the said lands forever, and to pay the quit rent, it being the
one-third of six pecks and a half of good, sweet winter wheat.
"Dated, April 16, 1719.
Hendrick Kip, L. S.,
Her
Jacomvntie X Kip, L. S.
mark.
Witnesses,
Evert Van Wagenen,
Isaac Kip,
Jno. Crooke, Jr."
These records show that Hendrick Kip, the patentee, was
living in 17 12, but dead in 17 19; and that his son, Hendrick,
was living in the Heermance house, and his son-in-law, Mattys
Sleight, on the Radcliff farm.
Holgate says Jacob Kip was twice married, first to Hen-
ritta Wessels, widow of Gulian Verplank, and, second, to
Rachel Swartwout, daughter of John Swartwout. Dr. Purple,
30 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
better authority, in the Geneological Record of April, 1877,
says it- was his cousin. Jacobus, who married the widow Ver-
plank ; and that his only wife was the daughter of Roeloff, not
John Swartwout ; that both bishop Kip and Mr. Holgate give
the date of her birth, April 10, 1669, and that of her death, Sep-
tember 16, 1717 ; and that she was living, and with her husband,
then called Jacob Kip, sen,, sponsors at the baptism of Rachel,
daughter of their son, Isaac, on the 2d of October, 1726. He
made his will in 1 731, and died in 1733. He had nine children,
as follows :
Isaac, baptised February 9, 1696, married, January 7, 1720,
Cornelia Lewis; Roeloff, born October 31, 1697, married, Feb-
ruary 9, 1721, Sara Dumon ; Jacobus, born November 26, 1699,
married, February 17, 1733, Klartjen Van Wagenen, daughter
of Evert Van Wagenen ; Rachel, twin sister to Jacob, married,
February 16, 1720, Gerrardus Lewis; Eva, born April 15, 1707,
married, December 9, 1733, Gerrit Van Wagenen; Catalyntie,
baptised at Albany, February 18, 1705, married William V^an
Vradenburgh ; Johannes, married Marytjen Van Etten ; Maria,
born February 18, 1709, married John Van Benthuysen ; Abra-
ham, born January 24, 1714, married Elsie Pruyn. His landed
estate at his death was divided between these nine children.
The Kips were the first to build and settle in what is now
the town of Rhinebeck, and the Rhinebeck genealogist and
antiquarian will find an interest in the question : What of
them ? and what has become of them ? As we have seen,
Jacob's nine children, five of them sons, all married ; and all
of them married Vans and Hollanders, save Roeloff, who mar-
ried a DuMont, and hence a woman of Huguenot extraction ;
and Rachel, who married a Lewis, and hence a man of Welsh
extraction. These sons all had families, and gave a large infu-
sion of Kips to our early population. And yet the name, like
that of nearly all the old Holland settlers, has nearly died out.
There is but one of the name left on the territory of ancient
Kipsbergen ; and we think some of his lands have never had
any but Kip owners, and have nearly all come to him by right
of inheritance from his ancestors.
Isaac Kip's wife, Cornelia Lewis, we are told, was the
C'.ENEAI.OCrY OF JACOI! KIP. 3 1
daughter of Leonard Lewis and Elizabeth Hardenburgh, his
wife, born November 9, 1692. He died July 2, 1762; she, July
10, 1772. Their children were Elizabeth, born April q, 1721 ;
Leonard, 1725; Rachel, 1726; Elizabeth, 1728; Isaac, 1732;
Abraham married Dorothea Remsen ; Jacobus married Eliza-
beth Frazier.
Leonard Kip married Elizabeth Marschalk, April 11, 1763.
He died 1804; she, 1818. Their son, Leonard, married Maria
Ingraham. He born 1774; she, 1784. Their son, William In-
graham, married Elizabeth Lawrence, and became Bishop of
California. Their son, Isaac, married Sarah Smith ; Rev. Dr.
Francis M. Kip was their son, and Sarah Smith Kip, wife of
William C. Miller, of Albany, their daughter. The latter were
the parents of William A. Miller, at one time pastor of the
Reformed Dutch Church in Rhinebeck.
Roeloff was the second son of Jacob Kip, the patentee,
born October 31, 1697. He married Zara, the daughter of
John The Baptist DuMont, of Kingston, on the 9th of Febru-
ary, 1721. They had ten children, as follows: Greetjin, bap-
tised December 24, 1721 ; Jacob, baptised May 19, 1723; John
The Baptist, baptised February 28, 1725 ; Isaac, baptised Jan-
uary 22, 1727; Rachel, baptised September 8, 1728; Neeltje,
baptised January 25, 1730; Neeltje, baptised March 25, 1732;
Zara, baptised September 16, 1733; Ignatious, baptised Octo-
ber 17, 1736; Abraham, baptised October 17, 1738. Of these
ten children we have the line of John The Baptist, as follows:
John The Baptist Kip married Catharina, probably the
daughter of Andries Heermanee and Neeltje Van W'agenen,
baptised April 14, 1728. Their children were: Roeloff, bap-
tised April 25, 1758; Neeltje, baptised November 12, 1759,
married Gerrit, grandson of Evert Van Wagenen, December
18, 1785 ; Andrew, born 1761, married Sarah, daughter of Jaco-
bus Kip, born 1772 ; Sarah, baptised November 10, 1765 ; Ger-
rit, baptised July 12, 1767, married Clarissa, daughter of Jacobus
Kip, baptised May 26, 1776; Clartje, baptised September i,
1770; John, baptised June 19, 1772.
Of theee seven children, Andrew had children as follows:
Clarissa, John, James, Catharine, Andrew, Sarah and Jane. Of
32 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
these there are no descendants. Gerrit had Catharine, Henry
James, Clarissa and WiUiam. Of these, Henry James, born
June 15, 1805, alone had a descendant, as follows: William
Bergh Kip, born October 14, 1846.
William Bergh Kip is thus a lineal descendant from Jacob,
the patentee, in the sixth generation. He is the possessor of
nearly two hundred of the ancestral acres, and an elegant
country seat on the Hudson, which he calls Ankony, in honor
of the Indian chief from whom the land was originally and
justly purchased. He is our town supervisor, an intelligent,
public-spirited gentleman ; and we know of no one more com-
petent to represent the town of Rhinebeck at the county seat,
and protect the interests of his constituents.
On the 1 6th of October, 1719, Henry Beekman, then of
New York, sold to Jacob Kip, the patentee, three hundred and
one and a half acres of land for two hundred and fifty pounds,
described as " on the east side of Hudson's river, at a place
called ' Kipsberry,' beginning by the river, on the south side of
a small creek where John Kip heretofore lived, * " * being
the bounds of Jacob Kip and Company." This tract appears
on the map north of the patent to Arie Rosa & Co. This, with
the lands previously purchased from Beekman, at the Hog
bridge, put Jacob Kip in possession of about seven or eight
hundred acres of land at his death.
On the 5th of August, 1752, a charter for a ferry was
granted to Abraham Kip on the east side, and Moses Contine
on the west side of the river. It gave them the exclusive right
"to run a ferry across the Hudson between the landing place
of said Kip on the east shore of said river, and the landing
place of said Contine on the west shore of said river, exclusive
of all others within the space of two miles above and two miles
below the said landings, and to take tolls." The grant was
perpetual on condition that two sufficient ferry-boats were to
be kept, one on each side of the river.
The ferry on this side was Kip's down to 1785. In this
year our town records tell us Andries Heermanee was road
master from the Hog bridge to Beekman's mills, and from the
mills to Kip's ferry. After this date the mills are Madame
THE VAN WAGENENS AND THEIR LANDS. 33
Livingston's, and we think the ferry is for the last time Kip's.
In 1792, the record, made by Henry Lyle as town clerk, says
William Radclift is overseer of the highway "from Radclift's
landing to the post road, and from the Hog bridge to Mrs.
Livingston's mills." In 1802, the record tells us Hans Kiersted
is road master from Radcliff's landing to the post road, and
from the Hog bridge to Livingston's mills. In this year the
river road became the " Ulster and Saulsbury Turnpike," with
a toll-gate at Hager's bridge, and ceased to be a town charge,
and we hear nothing more of the landing until 18 16. In this
year we get this record : " Path Master, Henry F. Talmage, on
the abolished turnpike from the Long Dock east to the adjoin-
ing town." Who was the owner of the landing and the ferry
in the meantime, the record does not tell us. From this time
on it is simply the " Long Dock." Governor Lewis' dock and
mills are named for the first time in 1806, and in 1820 we get
this record: " Martin Heermance, path master from the Long
Dock easterly to the centre of the post road at the Flats, and
from the Slate Dock to Mr. Rider's, including W. Radclift ;"
and this is the first we hear of the Slate Dock.
CHAPTER V.
THE VAN WAGENENS AND THEIR LANDS.
A Van Wagenen Genealogy, published last year in the
New York Genealogical and Biographical Record by a descend-
ant of the family, informs us that Gerrit Artsen was the son of
Aart Jacobson and Annetje Gerrits, and was probably born in
Albany. He married Clara, daughter of Evert Pels and Fan-
netje Symens, who was baptised in New York, September 10,
165 1, and became a member of the Kingston Church in 1666.
He had ten children who took Van Wagenen for a family name,
after the Dutch custom, because his father came from a place
in Holland called Wat^eninge, in Gilderland, ten miles west of
Arnheim. The name in our old church records is always spelled
" Wageninge," when written by dominie Vas, of Kingston. His
children were thus, as follows :
Aart Van Wagenen, probably born in Kingston, about
1670, married, October 6, 1695, Altje, daughter of Jan Elting,
34 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
the patentee; Evert Van Wagenen, baptised April i8, 1675;
Barent Van Wagenen, baptised April 18, 1675, and, therefore,
probably twin brother to Evert ; Goosen Van Wagenen, born
in Kingston ; Jannetje Van Wagenen, baptised June 25, 1672 ;
Annetje Van Wagenen, baptised September 7, 1684; Jacob
Van Wagenen, baptised October 3, 1686; Simon Van Wagenen,
baptised April 7, 1689; Neeltje Van Wagenen, baptised April
17, 1692; Rebecka Van Wagenen, baptised November 11, 1697.
Of these ten children, four are known to have become the
owners and settled upon the Artsen, and the larger part of
the Elting share of the patent.
1. Evert purchased lot number six, and settled upon it in
1709. He had nine children, as follows:
Gerrit, Janneka, Nicholas, Aart, married. May 14, 1731,
his cousin Rebecka, daughter of Barent Van Wagenen ; Klaartje,
married, February 17, 1733, Jacob Kip, Jr.; Jacob, Margaret,
Johannes, married, November 30, 1745, his cousin Annatje,
daughter of Barent Van Wagenen ; Sara, married, October 16,
1736, her cousin Hendrickus Heermans, Jr.
2. Barent Van Wagenen purchased and settled on three-
fifths of lot number two, and had eleven children, as follows :
Clara, married, June 18, 1726, Jacob Van Vradenburgh;
Maria, married, November 15, 1735, her cousin Johannes Van
Benthuysen ; Gerrit, married, December 29, 1733, Eva, the
daughter of Jacob Kip, Sen. ; Johannes, married, July 4, 1747,
Gertrude Schot ; Rebecka, married her cousin Aart, son of
Evert Van Wagenen; Sara; Neeltje, married, November 20,
1742, Mathew, son of Jacobus Van Etten ; Annatje, married
her cousin Johannes, son of Evert Van Wagenen; Jacob; Ca-
trina ; Benjamin, married, December 4, 1756, Margaret Burger,
widow of Gerardus Van Buiren.
3. Annatje Van Wagenen married Hendrickus Heermance,
who bought and settled on lot number three, the original
Ellerslie farm. He had six children, as follows :
Hendrickus. married, October 16, 1736, his cousin Sara,
daughter of Evert Van Wagenen ; Margaret, married Jacobus
Ostrander, September 29, 1739; Phillipus, married Clara Heer-
mance, probably his cousin; Jannetje. married Cornelius
genp:alogv of the van wagenens. 35
Ostrander; Wilhelmus, married Neeltje Hoghland ; Andries,
married Rachel, daughter of Jacobus Van Etten.
4. Goosen Van Wagenen, married, June 15, 171 5, Gertrude
Swart. He purchased and settled upon two-fifths of lot num-
ber two, and a home lot of seven acres on lot number three.
He had no children.
5. Neeltje Van Wagenen married Andries Heermance, and
had thirteen children baptised in Kingston, as follows:
Jan, August 19, 171 1; Engeltie, May 9, 1714 ; Jacob, Sep-
tember 23, 1716; Annatje, January i, 1718; Janneka, January
8, 1721 ; Clara, March 22, 1719; Gerrit, November 18, 1722;
Petrus, September 16, 1724; Hendricus, May 19, 1726; Catrina,
April 14, 1728; Wilhelmus, February i, 1730; Nicholas, March
5, 1732; Phillippus, March 17, 1734; Abraham, August 7, 1737.
These people probably migrated from Kingston to Rhine-
beck, and mostly to that part of the precinct which is now the
town of Red Hook. Jacob probably married Catharina Vos-
burg, and settled in the stone house west of Henry Benner's
old place. They were the parents of General Martin Heer-
mance, who married and settled on Rhinebeck Flats, and thus
the grandparents of the family who are now the owners and
occupants of the old Beekman mansion in Rhinebeck.
Lot number six was in the possession of Evert Van Wag-
enen's descendants to a period probably as late as 1800. His
grandson, Gerrit, who married Neeltje, the daughter of John
The Baptist Kip, on the 8th of February, 1785, was road mas-
ter from Radclift's to Captain Kip's, in 1798 ; and in 1804 Jacob
Kip, a carpenter, and, we think, brother-in-law to the said
Gerrit Van Wagenen, sold to Aldert Smedes " the easterly part
of a farm released by Arent Van Wagenen and Johannes Van
Wagenen to Johannes Van Wagenen." Rhinecliff, the eastern
terminus of the Rhinebeck and Kingston ferry, is located on
part of the lands conveyed to Evert Van Wagenen by his
father, Gerrit Artsen, in 1710.
Lot number three was disposed of by Hendricus Heer-
mance in his will, dated March 23, 1750, as follows: " I give to
my dear and loving wife during her widowhood for her use the
one-half of my farm whereon I at present am dwelling, with
^6 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
the house, barn and homestead so as at this time I occupy and
use them. * "^ * It is my will and desire that my son,
Hendricus Heermance, shall have and enjoy all that whole
piece of land or farm whereon we now at present are both
residing, with all that depends thereon, so as my father-in-law,
Gerrit Artsen. has made the same over to me, on condition
that it shall be accounted to him out of my estate for the sum of
two hundred and sixty-six pounds, * '* * but on condition
that my said wife shall wholly possess and use one-half of the
land during her widowhood, as above mentioned." This will
further says : "■ I appoint for my heirs my six children — namely,
' Hendricus, Phillipus, Wilhelmus, Andries, Margaret, wife of
Jacobus Ostrander ; and Annatje, wife of Cornelius Ostrander.' "
To Phillipus, Wilhelmus and Andrie she left about eight hun-
dred acres — two hundred and seventy-five each — on Wapping-
er's Kill, which is now in the town of Fishkill, and was then in
Rombout precinct.
We can find no evidence that at the date of this will the
river road, from Radcliff's through this farm to the school
house at Garretson's, was in existence as a public highway.
And we are not quite certain that the old Kelly farm-house,
though on the farm, was the homestead of Hendricus Heer-
mance. The "home lot" of seven acres, sold to Goosen Van
Wagenen by his father, Gerrit Artsen, in 1720, seems to us to
have included the ground occupied by this house. And how
long Hendricus Heermance, Jr., continued in the possession of
the premises after the death of his father, in 1750, we have not
learned. We find the property in the possession of Jacobus
Kip in 1789; and we find a road district "from Radcliff's to
Hans Van Wagenen's," the Garretson place, for the first time
in 1791, with Johannes Van Wagenen, Jr., for road master. In
1794 the record is as follows: "Jacobus Kip, from Radclift's
to Jacobus Kip's." In 1795, it is as follows: " From Radclift's
to Jacobus Kip's, none chosen. Jacobus Kip served last year,
but is now dead."
This Jacobus Kip was the grandson of Jacob, the patentee.
The Dutch descendants among us give James for the English
of Jacobus, and never use Jacob for Jacobus. The only one
DISPOSITION OF THE ELLEUSLIE FARM. 37
of the sons who had a Jacobus baptised was Jacob, who mar-
ried Clartjen, the daughter of Evert Van Wagenen. He had
one thus baptised on the 23d of May, 1742. We assume,
tlierefore, that he was the Jacobus Kip who succeeded Hen-
dricus Heermance, Jr., in the possession of the Ellerslie farm;
that his wife was Clartjen, the daughter of the said Hendricus
Heermance, Jr., baptised on the 27th of October, 1745, and
that she was thus his second cousin ; and we assume, farther,
that he became the owner of the said farm by virtue of his
son-in-Iawship to the said Hendricus Heermance, Jr.
Jacobus Kip had two daughters, his only children. Of
these, Sarah, the elder, became the wife of Major Andrew, and
Clartjen, the younger, of his brother. Garret Kip. After the
death of his father-in-law, in 1795, Major Andrew Kip became
the owner of the Ellerslie farm, and retained it until 18 14, when
he sold it to Maturin Livingston, the son-in-law of Governor
Morgan Lewis, for five thousand dollars. Maturin Livingston
retained the property for two years, and built the present
Kelly mansion on a site and plans, we are told, selected by his
wife. Mrs. Livingston was the only child of Governor Lewis,
and a short experience of her absence from home sufficed to
satisfy them that she was needed there. The governor's man-
sion at Staatsburgh, a few miles below, was ample for all, and,
yielding to their earnest wishes, she returned to it with her
family, and made it her future home. Accordingly, in 1816,
the Ellerslie farm was sold to James Thompson, He retained
it until his death, when it became the property of his son,
James, whose wife, we are told, was the daughter of Harry
Walter Livingston, of Columbia County. He retained it until
1837, when he sold it to James Warwick, who retained it for
three years, when, becoming pecuniarily embarrassed, he made
an assignment to Wm. B. Piatt, of Rhinebeck Village. In 1841
Mr. Piatt sold the estate to William Kelly, of New York, for
forty-two thousand dollars. The property at this time, we are
told, embraced four hundred acres, Mr. Thompson having
added one hundred acres to his original purchase. Mr. Kelly
increased his acres, by additional purchases, to seven or eight
38 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
hundred. He must thus have become the owner of lots three
and four of the original division.
Mr. Kelly not only multipled his acres, but did what
money, taste, intelligence and enterprise could do to adorn
them and increase their productiveness. The mansion, though
of an ancient type, is stately and capacious, and commands a
river and mountain view of great extent and beauty. It stands
in the borders of a park of five hundred fenceless acres, em-
bracing wood and meadow land, lakelets and rivulets, and every
variety of natural and charming scenery. With its avenues,
walks, lawns, flower-plats, fruit-houses, orchards, gardens and
conservatories, all artistically planned and arranged, and open
to the public on week days under a few indispensable restric-
tions, there is nothing of which Rhinebeck may so justly take
pride to itself, because there is nothing for which it is so widely
and favorably known as the presence within its borders of the
Ellerslie park and gardens.
The three-fifths of lot number two, and five-ninths of lot
number five, which became the property of Barent Van Wag-
enen in 1 721, by conveyance from his father, Gerrit Artsen,
were disposed of to all his children by his will dated 1731.
Four of his daughters, with their husbands — viz. : Marytje with
her husband, Johannes Van Benthuysen ; Clara with her hus-
band. Jacobus Van Vradenburg ; Rebecka with her husband,
Aart Van Wagenen ; and Anna with her husband, Johannes
Van Wagenen, Jr., all of Rhinebeck precinct, sold to their
three living brothers, Johannes, Benjamin and Jacob Van Wag-
enen, all their right, title and interest in the said real estate.
Goosen Van Wagenen had no children, and willed his
two-fifths of lot number two to his two nephews, Johannes and
Benjamin Van Wagenen, the children of his brother Barent,
his next door neighbors, requiring them to support his widow
during life.
Of Barent Van Wagenen's sons, Benjamin is the only one
of whose children we have record. In 1795, lot number two,
containing one hundred and sixty acres, was owned by his four
sons, Jacob, Benjamin, Barent B. and Johannes B. Van Wag-
enen ; and on the fifth day of May in this year, the three former
ARIK ROOSA AND HTS LANDS. 39
disposed of all their right, title and interest therein to the
latter. In the year 1799, Johannes disposed of the same to
the Rev. Freeborn Garretson, taking in exchange therefor the
lands in the vicinity of Schooterhook, in the interior of the
town, which remained the inheritance of his children to a
recent date, and at the date of the exchange were in the occu-
pation of the Rev. Freeborn Garretson and his wife, Catherine
Livingston, who was a Beekman heir.
The children of Benjamin Van Wagenen and Margaret
Burger were as follows : Johannes married his cousin, Margaret
Schryver; Jacob married his cousin, Anna Schryver, the sister
of Margaret; Leah married her cousin, Martinus Schryver;
Maria married her cousin, Alburtus Schryver; Benjamin mar-
ried Catharine Root ; Barent married Eva Van Etten ; Catha-
rine married John Welch, Jr.; Sarah married John Baxter.
The best known of the descendants of these sons were
those of Jacob and John. Jacob's were as follows : Leah mar-
ried John W. Cramer; Benjamin; John L married Sally Addi-
son ; Catharine married David Myers; Martin married Elanor
Lent. John's were as follows: Benjamin married Clarissa Van
Wagenen; Martin; Jacob married Charlott Winship ; Mary;
Barent married Sally Neher ; David ; William.
CHAPTER VL
ARIE ROOSA AND HIS LANDS.
Arie Roosa's wife was Maria Pels, and doubtless the
daughter of Evert Pels, of Kingston. He was thus brother-
in-law to Gerrit Artsen. His children were: Evert, born Octo-
ber 26, 1679, married Tryntie Van Etten; Engeltie, born Sep-
tember, 1685 ; Arie, born June 3, 1694, married Gertie Ostrand-
er; Mary, born August 28, 1698. These are all of whom we
have record ; there were probably others.
Evert Roosa, as wc have seen, became the owner of lot
number four, in 17 10. His children, of whom we have record,
were: Catharine, Jacobus, Arie, Marytie, Rachel, Abraham,
Isaac, Leah and Aldert.
A deed from Jacobus Schoonmaker and Annatje, his wife,
to Jacobus Kip, dated April 8, 1775, says, Annatje was the
40 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
daughter of Hendricus Sleight, Jr., deceased ; that Matthyes
Sleight and Catholyntie, his wife, in their life time, by a deed
of conveyance, dated August 17, 1742, sold to Hendricus
Sleight, Jr., forever, two-thirds of lot number four, "to be
taken with a straight line from one end to the other, so that
his two-thirds of that lot may lay in one piece together, on
that side of the said lot where Arie Roosa, Jr., was formerly
settled;" that the said Hendricus Sleight, Jr., in his life time,
made his last will and testament on May 4th, 1755, and
devised it to his son Matthyes and three daughters — to wit :
"Catholyntie, the now wife of Jeremiah Van Aken ; Annatje,
the now wife of Jacobus Schoonmaker : and Majeke, the now
wife of Daniel Schoonmaker, Jr., all his whole estate real, to
be equally divided between them, share and share alike ; that
the said Matthyes, son of the said Hendricus Sleight, Jr., de-
ceased, departed this life before he attained the age of twenty-
one years, and left no lawful issue ; so his part did descend to
his three sisters." These parties, with their husbands, divided
the said two-thirds of lot number four by lot, on the ist of
September, 1774, the south lot falling to Jeremiah Van Aken,
the middle to Jacobus, and the north to Daniel Schoonmaker.
Jacobus sold his share to Jacobus Kip on the 8th day of April,
1775, for three hundred and twenty pounds. What became of
the south third of the lot of Evert and Arie Roosa, Jr., we
have not learned. Daniel Schoonmaker sold his share to Wil-
liam Radclift, brother-in-law to Jacobus Kip, and he in turn
sold to Van Wagenens.
Laurens Osterhout's wife was Rebecka Roosa. Of her
relationship to the patentee we have no knowledge. Their
sons were: Jan, Jacob, Benjamin and Isaac. As we have
seen, Laurens Osterhout became the owner of lot number one
by purchase from Arie Roosa, in 1710. He retained it until
the 3d of November, 1741, when he sold it to Jacobus Van
Etten for three hundred and seventy pounds, the lot at this
time containing about one hundred and sixty acres of land.
Jacobus Van Etten's wife was also Rebecka Roosa. Of
the relationship to the patentee, or the wife of Laurens Oster-
hout, we have no record. Of the children of Jacobus Van
SALES OF THE TILLOTSON PROPERTY. 41
Etten we have record, as follows: Jan married Rachel West-
fall ; Annatjen married Gysbert Westfall ; Rachel married
Andries Heermans ; Jacobus married Margrita Kool ; Abraham ;
Benjamin married Helentie Van Vradenburgh ; Matthew mar-
ried Neeltje Van Wagenen ; Helegond married Jan Maris;
Margrieta married Johannes Kip ; Leah ; Isaac. ~"
Mathew and Isaac Van Etten were the owners in common
of lot number one, in 1790. In this year Isaac sold out his
half interest therein to Thomas Tillotson, the land to be di-
vided on a line selected by Mr. Tillotson. In this division
eighteen acres above the half of the land fell to the north of
the line, and thus to Matthew Van Etten, he accounting for
the same to Mr. Tillotson. Mr. Tillotson at once took posses-
sion df the property, and built thereon the present brick man-
sion, which remained his residence until his death, in 1830.
His wife, Margaret Livingston, the granddaughter of Henry
Beekman, Jr., died several years earlier. After the death of
his father, the property passed into the possession of John Til-
lotson, who sold it to Dr. Federal Vanderburgh, together with
the land now owned and occupied by Mrs. Dyar, for nineteen
thousand dollars. Doctor Vanderburgh retained the land on
the east side of the creek, and built for himself the residence
which is now^ the Dyar mansion, and sold the Tillotson man-
sion, with the lands on the west side of the creek, to his son-in-
law, John B. James. John B. James sold it to his brother,
Augustus James, and the latter in turn sold it to Alfred Wild.
For beauty of location and scenery it is one of the finest coun-
try seats on the banks of the Hudson. With a view to recon-
struction and improvements, Mr. Wild had commenced the
work of demolition, when his fortune was lo.st in the enterprise
of the Portage Canal, and the property passed out of his hands
into those of a mortgagee. It has been without an occupant
for a number of years, is going to decay, and beginning to wear
a wild and dreary aspect. With men of taste and wealth every-
where looking for residences on the banks of the Hudson, it is
a wonder this estate did not find an occupant when it found an
owner.
Mathew Van Etten died on the 28th of May, 1808, aged
42 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
eighty-six years. His wife, Elenor Van Wagenen, died on the
17th of August, 1798, aged eighty-two years. She thus had
birth six years before her husband. They were both buried in
the " Kerk Hof," near the Hutton gate. At the death of
Mathew Van Etten his son, Barent, became the owner of the
homestead. His wife was Sarah FroeHegh, and their children
were: Elenor, who married Jacob, the son of Johon Nickolas
Cramer ; Mathew, who married Rebecca Schryver ; Margaret,
who married Asa Sherman ; and Peter, who married Elizabeth
McCavy.
Barent Van Etten died on the 12th of February, 1833, aged
seventy-two years. His wife died on the i6th of August, 1845,
aged seventy-nine years. At the death of his father-in-law
Jacob Cramer bought out the other heirs, and became the
owner and occupant of the Van Etten Homestead. Jacob
Cramer and his wife both died in the same year and month —
he on the 20th, and she on the 24th of August, 1850 — he in the
seventy-second year of his age, and she in the sixty-seventh of
her age. Soon after the death of their parents the Cramer
heirs disposed of the estate, comprising about eighty acres of
land, to Miss Elizabeth Jones, for eighteen thousand dollars.
The ground was at once occupied by Miss Jones and her
brother, Edward, and his family; and the Jones' mansion, the
most complete and the most costly in the town, erected. Ed-
ward Jones died December 8, 1869, and his sister Elizabeth,
May 29, 1875; and the estate is now, by inheritance, in the
possession of Edward, the only son of Edward Jones, deceased.
The Camp-meeting woods were purchased by the Rev.
Freeborn Garretson of Maj. Andrew Kip, May i, 1 801, for $787.
The land on the west side of the creek, occupied by Governor
Lewis' mills, and Governor Lewis' dock on the river, are on
the Van Wagenen lands, and must have been purchased from
the Garretsons by Governor Lewis some time before 1806. Our
old town records tell us that in 1806 Jacob Ackert was road
master " from George Marquart's to Lewis' Landing." The
Camp-meeting woods and Governor Lewis' Landing are now
included in the Kelly estate. Our people remember well when
Governor Lewis' mills and landing did a thriving business. A
JAN ELTON AND HIS LANDS. 43
gentleman at our elbow says the governor's mill-dam sometimes
took the water from Tillotson's mill, a short distance below ;
and sometimes Tillotson's dam raised the water so high at the
Governor's as to obstruct the action of his great over-shot
wheel, when there was " trouble in the camp ;" and the opera-
tives threatened " to cut down Tillotson's dam."
William Schell was the occupant of the Tillotson mills
during the last war with England, and, we are told, found them
very profitable. There was a saw-mill and a whiskey distillery
included in the premises, and all were in the use and occupa-
tion of Mr. Schell, as lessee.
A map of the farm purchased by Major Andrew Kip when
he sold the Ellerslie farm to Maturin Livingston, in 1814, made
in 1795, shows an "Oil Mill" on the site of the present grist
mill, and gives a quantity of land on the west side of the creek
to Henry B. Livingston. This is now the only grist mill left
on the creek, and the only one in the town of Rhinebeck.
CHAPTER Vn.
JAN ELT(3N AND HIS LANDS.
Jan Elton's wife was Jacomyntje Sleight, and a widow,
with four children, when he married her. Her children were:
Jannitje Newkirk, Hilletje Wynkoop, Jacomyntje Pawling and
Tryntje DuBois. Jan Elton's children were: Roeloff, Corne-
lius, William, Gertje and Altje. In his will he left half of
his property to his five, and the other half to his wife's nine
children. Lot number two in this patent fell to his own five
children. And this explains why lot number two was divided
into five, and lot number five into nine shares. In 1713-14
Gerrit Artsen became the owner, by purchase from these heirs,
of the whole of number two, and five-ninths of number five.
Of Jacomyntie's Fly, sold to the heirs of John Elting by Henry
Beekman, in 1705, the northern half fell to his five, and the
southern half to his wife's nine children. And in the same
manner the whole of the northern half, and five-ninths of the
southern half of this Fly became the property of Gerrit Artsen.
He was thus the owner of nearly two-thirds of all the land cov-
ered by the Artsen, Roosa and Elting purchase from the Indians.
44 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
On the 19th of February, 1719, Hendricus Heermance
deeded back to Gerrit Artsen, in fulfillment of a promise made
when he purchased, "all that certain home lot " lying within
the bounds of number three, and on the north of " Jan Elting's
Kill," containing seven acres of land.
■ On the 22d of July, 1720, Gerrit Artsen deeded to his
son, Goosen Van Wagenen, of Dutchess County, for sixty-two
pounds, two-fifths of number two, two-ninths of number five,
and two-fifths in the northern, and two-ninths in the southern
half of Jacomyntie's Fly and the " home lot," conveyed back
to him by Hendricus Heermance.
We learn from Barent Van Wagenen's will, dated April
28, 1 73 1, that he owned three-fifths of lot number two, " bound-
ed southerly by Laurens Osterhout, northerly by Goosen Van
Wagenen, easterly by the Kill, and westerly by the river;" also
five-ninths of lot number five, bounded southerly by lot num-
ber four, of Evert Roosa ; northerly, by Solomon DuBois;
easterly, by the Kill ; and westerly, by the river ; and also five-
ninths in the southern half, and three-fifths in the northern
half of Jacomyntie's Fly. In reference to this property, Barent
Van Wagenen says in his will, that it came to him by " trans-
poort van myn vader, Gerrit Artsen, or Gerrit Van Wagenen."
This " transpoort " or deed is not on record, and the date cannot
be precisely determined. Gerrit Artsen's will was proved on
the 9th of March, 1722. It makes no reference to property in
Dutchess County, all of which must, therefore, have been pre-
viously deeded.
Excepting Solomon DuBois, we can find no person who
owned and occupied land on the grant by virtue of his relation-
ship to John Elting.
Each of the five partners to this patent was required to pay
one-fifth of the annual quit rent. The lands assigned to each
were, therefore, intended to be the same in acres or the same in
value. We gather from the tax-book, now in the hands of the
colledtor of the town of Rhinebeck, that the patent, intended to
cover about twelve hundred, really included about twenty-two
hundred acres; and that of this amount about fifteen hundred
acres fell to the share of Artsen, Roosa and Elting, leaving about
seven hundred to the Kips.
THK NORTH WARD. 45
CHAPTER VIII.
THE NOR T II W A R I) .
Dutchess County was organized in 1683, and was
attached to Ulster for a number of years. Its bounds were
the county of Westchester on the south of the Highlands; on
the east, twenty miles from the river, it extended to Roelof
Jansen's Kill on the north, and followed the said Kill to
the river. In 171 7, the portion of Livingston's manor lying
south of Roelof Jansen's Kill was attached to Albany County,
and remained thus attached until April 4, 1786, when Columbia
County was formed. Dutchess County, including this territory,
was separated into three divisions, called wards, before 1722;
the South Ward extending from Westchester to Wappinger's
Creek; the Middle Ward from the said creek to the south line
of Pawling's purchase ; the North Ward from the said line to
the north end of the county.
These wards elected supervisors, assessors, overseers of the
fences, overseers of the King's highway, a constable and col-
lector, every two years ; and the taxes were levied on an assess-
ment made bi-annually by three county assessors.
The first election in the North Ward on record was held
in April, 1722, and the officers chosen were as follows:
Constable, William Schot ; Supervisor, Hendricus Beek-
man ; Assessors, Barent Van Benthuysen, Hendricus Heer-
manse; Collector, Roelof Kip; Overseers of the King's High-
way, Hendricus Buys, Hendrick Kip, Gerardus Lewis; Survey-
ors of the Fences, Dierk De Duytser, Tunis Pier.
TAX ASSESSMENT, 1 723.
The inhabitants, residents, sojourners and freeholders of
Dutchess County are rated and assessed by the assessors chosen
for the said county, as follows:
^ s. d. I £ ^' <J.
Widow Harmon Knicktr- | Hans Jacob Dencks 12 012
backer 5 o 5
Widow Adam Van Elstyn. . 505
Lauren? Knickerbackcr. .. . 18 18 o
Barent Van Benthuysen. .. . 10 2 o i Philip Feller 5
johai. Jacobus Melus 7 o 7 I Johannes Risdorph 3
Jacob Hooghtyiing 12 o 12 j Barent Noll S
Jan Vasburgh 11 o 11 1 Jurrie Soefelt 17
Aarent Feinhout 6
Nicolas Row iJ
Fallentyne Bender.
0
6
0
18
0
8
0
5
0
8
0
8
0
17
46
HISTORY OF RHINEBECK,
Lawrence Hendrick lo
Annaniaas Teel, Waganer. . lo
Frederick Mayer lo
Karl Neher 14
Philips, cooper 12
Herry Teder 12
Hans Jerry Prigell 8
Hans Adam Frederick 8
Henrick Sheerman u
Henrick Beem 7
Johannes Backus 9
Andries Countreman 6
Jurryan Saliman 6
Hans Felten VVoieven 9
Peter Woleven 14
Frans Kelder 12
Joseph Reykeri 15
Hendrick Shever 16
Peter Van Ostrander 14
Estate Marytie Ostrander. . 5
William I'raphagL-n. .. . 28
Jacob Kip 55
Hendrick Kip 15
Mathys Sleight 32
Abraham Freer 5
Evert Van VVagenen 29
Hendriciis Heermanse 12
Goose Van VVagenen 12
Laurense Osterliout 21
Hendricus Beekman 63
Jacob Poegh 5
Tunis Pier ... 14
Larense Teder 8
Peter Tybell 15
Alburtus Scliryver 5
Nicolas Eemeigh 10
Henrick Olile 10
Care! Ohle unable
Adam Eykert 18 o 18
Hans Lambert 19 o ig
Stephen Froelick 80S
Martten Wheitman 606
North Ward, 97 people, assessed
Tax, at IS. on a pound
Middle Ward, 48 people, assessed. . . .
Tax, at IS. on a pound
South Ward, 48 people assessed
Tax, at IS. on a pound
s.
d.
0
10
0
10
0
10
0
14
0
12
0
12
0
12
0
8
tia
Die
o
7
0
9
0
7
0
6
0
9
0
M
0
12
0
I.")
0
16
0
14
0
5
I
S
2
^5
0
15
I
12
0
5
1
9
0
12
0
12
I
I
3
0
0
5
0
14
0
8
0
15
0
5
0
10
0
10
Hendrick Bu3'S
Jacob Van Kempen
Nicolas Bonesteel
Areyen Hendrick, Van Pine
Isaac Borhans
Evert Knickerbacker
Johannes Row
Simon Westfall
John Windfield
Jacobus Van Etten
Martten Hoock
Peter Dob
Johannes Uob
Cornelius Knickerbacker. .
Valleniine shaver
Petf-r Wolleven, Jr
B.istian Traver
Deirk De Duyiser
Barent Van Wagenen
A braham Freer, J r
Gerardus Lewis
Jurrie Westfall
Johannes Berenger, seve-
maker
Wendel Polefer
A rie Roosa
Peter Van Etten .
Roelit Kip
William Simon
Martin Burger. . .
Adam Dinks
Henrick Swetselar
William Vredenburgh
William Schot
John J u rie Acre
("hristian Berg
Lazuroz Dome
Simon Coal
Aerya Rosa, Jr
Jurie Shever
Philip Saloman
£
8
10
7
12
10
7
6
14
5
5
6
12
6
II
5
5
7
13
21
8
8
8
5. d
o 8
o 10
o 7
o 12
o 10
o 7
o 6
o 14
o 5
o 5
o 6
o 12
o 6
O II
o 5
o 5
o 7
0 13
1 I
o 8
o 8
o 8
o 8
o S
o 8
8 o
9
5
5
10
o 9
o 5
o 5
o 10
8 o
.^54 8 o
. 40 12 o
. 27 3 o
.^.088 15 7
812 o o
543 o o
;^I22 3 O ;^2443 15 7
It will thus be seen that in 1722 the North Ward, which
comprised the present towns of Red Hook and Rhinebeck, con-
tained more taxable people than both the others, paid very
nearly twice as much tax as the South, which contained the
town of Fishkill, and was assessed ^276 r5s. more than the
ORCiANIZATION OF THE PRECINCT. 47
Middle Ward, which contained the town of Poughkeepsie. Of
course, the North Ward contained the thirty-five famihes of
Gov. Hunter's Palatines, found there in 171 8; and, as our list
of names will show, quite a number besides.
The elections in the North Ward were held in Kipsbergen
"at the usual place." On the 7th of April, 1724, the officers
following" were chosen :
Constable, William Schot ; Supervisor, Barent Van Wag-
enen ; Assessors, William Traphagen, Jacob Ploegh, Matyas
Sleight; Surveyors of Fences, Tunis Pier, Roelof Kip, Jacob
Ploegh; Collector, Arie Hendricks; Poundman, Tunis Pier.
In 1732, the last ward election held in Kipsbergen, at the
usual place and time, the following were the of^cers chosen :
Constable, Laurense Tiel ; Supervisor, Barent Van Ben-
thuysen ; Assessors, William Schot, Jan Vosburgh ; Collector,
Isaac Kip; Surveyors of tlie King's Highway, Hendrick She-
ver, Wendel Polver, Goosen Van Wagenen ; Pounder, formerly
for cattle and horses, Johannes Kip ; Surveyors of the Fences,
Mathys Sleight, Laurens Osterhout, Evert Van Wagenen.
The book in which we found these records contained pre-
miums awarded to different persons for wolves and bears cap-
tured in the county.
CHAPTER IX.
ORGANIZATION OF THE PRECINCT.
Rhinebeck was organized as a precinct on the i6th of
December, 1734. We are not told who were its first officers.
The precinct extended from the Columbia County line on the
north, below Mulford's place on the south, and from the river
to the Nine Partners' line on the east. Of course, when the
name Rhinebeck was thus legally applied to this territory, there
was an end of Kipsbergen, the " High Dutchers " having over-
whelmed the " Low Dutchers " by the strength of the tide
with which they came into the country.
We have a census of the county taken in 1740. It is of
the county as a whole, not by precincts. We think the follow-
ing list embraces all the freeholders in the precinct of Rhine-
beck at this date :
48
HISTORY OP^ RHINEBECK.
Henry Beekman, Frans Nieher,
L. Knickerbacker, Christovel Snyder,
Nicholas Hoffman, Marten Tiel,
Martinus Hoffman, Arnout Velie,
B. Van Benthuysen, Lawrence Tiel,
Philip Louden,
Hendrick Kip,
•Nicholas Row,
Jury Soefelt,
Zacharias Haber,
Frederick Sipperly,
Johannes Spaller,
Jury Felder,
William Cole,
Hans Hayner,
Johannes P. Snyder, Roeloff Kip,
Michael Sipperly, Mathys Sleight,
Jacob Cool,
Philip More,
Jan Van Benthuy-
sen,
Zacharias Smith,
Josias Ross,
Gysbert Westfall,
Alburtus Schryver,
Lawrance Oster-
hout.
David Richart,
Jacob Moul,
Mathys Eernst,
Adam Ostrander,
Simon Kool,
Gotfried Hendrick,
Wendel Yager,
Jacob Drom,
Martinus Shoe,
Tunis Pier,
Jury Ackert,
Evert Knickerback-
er,
Abraham Kip,
Hendricus Heer-
mance.
Evert Van Wagenen,
Johannes Backus,
Hans V. Wolleven,
Hans Lambert,
Joseph Rykert,
Hendrick Sheffer,
Peter Ostrander,
B. Van Steenburgh,
Hans Velte Shaffer,
William Freer,
William Schot,
Peter Tippel,
Stephen Frelick, .
Andries Heermance,
Michael Polver,
Johannes Weaver,
W^m. Van Vreden-
burgh, Jr.,
Nicholas Bonesteel, Johannes Kip,
Jacobus Van Etten, Arie Hendricks,
Vreden-
Wm. Van
burgh,
Isaac Kip,
Jacob Kip,
Goese Van Wagenen,
Arent Ostrander.
Jr.,
Basteaan Trever,
Conradt Berringer,
Jury Adam Soefeldt, Wendel Polver,
Philip Foelandt, Peter Van Etten,
Andries Widerwax, William Simon,
It will be noticed that there are no Livingstons or Rutsens
in the precinct of Rhinebeck at this date. And it is worthy
of note that Zacharias is the only freeholder of the name of
Smith.
Our town records commence in 1748. In this year eight
justices of the peace, of whom one was Arnout Velie, held a
Court of General Sessions at Poughkeepsie, and " ordered that
all and every precinct clerk in this county, to be chosen yearly
on every first Tuesday in April, do, within ten days thereafter,
make due return of the election of their respective precincts of
the ofificers chosen, on the said first Tuesday in April, unto the
clerk of the peace, under the penalty of thirty shillings to be
paid by every such precinct or town clerk omitting, the same
PRECINCT OFFICERS ELECTED. 49
to be recovered by the clerk of the peace, who is hereby em-
powered to sue for and recover the same."
Dutchess County, ss. After a true copy signed,
pr. Henry Livingston, Clerk,
pr. Johannes A. Ostrander, Precinct Clerk.
The first election in the precinct of Rhinebeck, under this
act, was thus recorded :
Dutchess Cowity, ss. : Att the election held in Rynbeek
precinct on the first thursday in Aprill, and in the year Anno
Dom. 1/49, Pursuant by an act of General Assembly Made
in the third year of the reign of the late Majesties, King Wil.
Ham and Queen Mary, to the freeholders of said county and
precinckt, on behalf of (themselves and others, for electing of
ofTficers for said precinckt of Rynbeek, the following officers of
this present year New Elected, viz. :
" Supervisor, Jan Van Deuse ; Assessors, Gerret Van Wag-
enen, Philip Feller; Constables, Johannes Seever, Jacob Oos-
trander, Frederick Haaver; Masters of the Poor. Frederick
Strydt, Roelof Kip; Pound Master, Johannes Kip; Fence
Viewers, Jacob Sickenaer, Joeannes herkenburg, Gerret Van
Wagenen ; Surveyors of the Highways, Isaac Kip, Peter tiepel,
Joseph Craford, Michael Siperlie, Godtvret Hendrick, John
Maris, Lawrens Rysdorp, Petrus Velie, Johannes Van Wage-
nen, Christian Dederick. pr. Johannes Ostrander, Clerk."
It will thus be seen that the precinct of Rynbeek in 1749,
covering the towns of Rhinebeck, Red Hook, and part of Hyde
Park, had ten road districts. In the next year the record has
eleven, as follows: i. Isaac Kip, from the mill to Beekman's —
that is, from the mill south of the church to the Heermance
house. Isaac Kip lived at the Flat rock, and the road from
thence north had no existence at this date ; it was laid out in
1764. 2. Nicholas Bonesteel, from Cole's bridge to the Hog
bridge; 3. Jacobus Van Etten, from the mill to Staatsburg ;
4. Peters Van Aaken, to Leija Van Wagenen's ; 5. Jan Van
Etten, to Mathew Van Etten's ; 6. Wendel Jager, freJm Albany
line to Cole's bridge; 7. Jacob Jager, for Waragkameek — that
is, from the post road in upper Red Hook east to the Milan
line; 8. Peter Pitcher, to Hofman's; g. Peter Schot, to Rut-
50 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
sen's. There are thus Rutsens in the precinct in 1750, of whom
we shall have more to say further on. The district to which
Peter Schot was assigned was from the church on the Flatts
east, to Mrs. Miller's. 10. Johannes Feller, to the Hooke; ii.
Peter Schryver, from Staatsburg to the end of precinct.
In a census of slaves in the county of Dutchess, taken in
1755, their numbers and owners in the precinct of Rhinebeck
were as follows :
Captain Zachariah Hoffman s List. — Col. Martin Hoffman
owned ten; Captain Zachariah HofTman, four; Vullared Wid-
beck, two ; Harmon Knickerbacker, two ; John Van Benthuy-
sen, four; Barent Van Benthuysen, eight; Anthony Hoffman,
one; Adam Pitzer, one; John Vosburgh, three; Captain Evert
Knickerbacker, one ; Rier Schermerhorn, one ; Peter Heer-
mance, one ; Garret Heermance, one — altogether thirty-eight.
Captain Evert Knickerbacker s List. — Jacob Siemon, one ;
Margaret Benner, one; Symon Kool, two; Nicolas Stickel,
one; Johannes Feller, one; Petrus Ten Broeck, five; Mrs.
Catharine Pawling, two ; Andries Heermance, two — altogether
fifteen.
Captain Frans NeJier s List. — Mrs. Alida Rutsen, six ; Mrs.
Rachel Van Steenburgh, two; Lawrense Tiel, one; Philip
Veller, two; Johannes Lambert, one; Jack Keip, four; Roelof
Keip, two ; Abraham Keip, three ; Gerrit Van Benthuysen,
three ; George Soefeldt, one ; George Adam Soefeldt, one ;
Susan Agnes Sheever, one ; Cornelius Ostrander, one ; Mrs.
Cathlyntie Van Vredenburgh, one — altogether twenty-nine.
Captain Lhndricns Heerniatiee's List. — Hendricus Heer-
mance, three ; «jerrit Van Wagenen, two ; Aart Van Wagenen,
one; Evert Van Wagenen, two ; Johan Van Wagenen, one ;
Peter DeWitt, four ; Jogham Reddely, two ; Mathew Sleight,
two; Hendrick Sleight, one; Jacobus Van Etten. Jr., one; Col.
Hendrick Beekman, eight; Lea Van Wagenen, one; Herry
Hendricks, two ; William Traphagen, one ; Joe Croffert, one;
Arie Hendricks, one ; Charles Crooke, one — altogether thirty-
four. In the precinct, fifty-two slave-holders, one hundred and
sixteen slaves.
RHINEBECK REVOIJJTIONARV PATRIOTS. 5 I
TITK REVOLUTION.
After the battle of Lexington, on the 19th of April, 1775,
the people of Dutchess County were asked to sign the follow-
ing pledge:
" Persuaded that the rights and liberties of America depend,
under God, on the firm union of its inhabitants in a vigorous
prosecution of the measures necessary for its safety, and con-
vinced of the necessity of preventing anarchy and confusion,
which attend a dissolution of the powers of government, we,
the freemen, freeholders and inhabitants of Dutchess County,
being greatly alarmed at the avowed design of the ministry to
raise a revenue in America, and shocked by the bloody scene
now enacting in Massachusetts bay, do, in the most solemn
manner, resolve never to become slaves, and do associate under
all the ties of religion, honor and love to our country, to adopt
and to carry into execution whatever measures may be recom-
mended by the Continental Congress, or resolved upon by our
provincial convention for the purpose of preserving our consti-
tution, of opposing the several arbitrary acts of the British
Parliament, until a reconciliation between Great Britain and
America, on constitutional principles, which we most solemnly
desire, can be obtained ; and that we will, in all things, follow
the advice of our general committee respecting the purposes
aforesaid, the preservation of peace and good order, and the
safety of individuals and property."
The people in the precinct of Rhinebeck who thus repu-
diated the British Government, and placed themselves under
the power of new men and new measures, were as follows :
Petrus Ten Broeck, Peter Hermanse, Samuel Green,
P. G. Livingston, Zach. Hoffman, Jr., Peter Traver,
George Sheldon, Martin Hoffman, Andrew Simon,
William Beem, Zacharias Hoffman; Jacob Fisher,
John Van Ness, Abraham Cole, Samuel Elmendorf,
Herman Hoffman, James Everett, Zacharias Backer,
Ananias Cooper, William Pitcher, Jr., Johannes Hannule,
David Van Ness, Jacob More, Jr., Johannes Richter,
Egbert Benson, Christian More, Levi Jones,
Jacob Hermanse, Lodowick Elseffer, Lsaac Cole,
Andries Hermanse, Isaac Walworth, Hendrick Miller,
52
HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
Simon Cole, Jr.,
Frederick Weir,
John Banks,
John Garrison,
Nicholas Hermanse,
Philip Bonesteal,
Simon S. Cole,
Andries Michal,
John Davis,
Christian Miller,
Will.elmus Pitcher,
John Hermanse,
Godfrey Gay,
Henrich Tetor,
Johannes Smith,
Jeab Meyer,
William Harrison,
Christoffel Schnei-
der,
Christopher Fitch,
John Schermerhorn,
Henry Waterman,
Jr.,
Jeab Waterman,
Henry Beekman,
Evert Van Wage-
nen,
Art Van Wagenen,
H.J. Knickerbacker,
William Tuttle,
Stephen Sears,
Joseph Elsvvorth,
Jacob Thomas,
Philip Feller,
Harman Whitbeck,
Evert Vasburgh,
John Moore,
Petrus Backer,
Johannes Backer,
Conradt Lescher,
Michael Sheffer,
Goetlieb Mardin,
Hendrick Mardin,
David Martin,
Cornelius Swart,
James Adams,
Daniel Ogden,
Joseph Funck,
Christian Fero,
Ryer Schermerhorn
Wilhelmus Smith,
Frederick Moul,
George Reystorf,
Joseph Rogers,
Benjamin Bogardus,
Hans Kierstead,
Isaac Kip,
Jacob Kip,
Philip J. Moore,
Nicholas Hoffman,
John Williams,
Joseph Lawrence,
Jeab Vosberg,
James Douglass,
William Klum,
Johannes Miller,
Jacob Schermer-
horn,
C. Schermerhorn,
Reyer Hermanse,
Jacob Hermanse,
William Pitcher,
Jacob A. Kip,
John Tremper,
Henry Shop,
John Balist,
Helmes Heermanse,
Cor. Elmendorph,
Philip Staats,
Isaac Beringer, Jr.,
William Waldorf,
Johannes Benner,
George Sharp,
Christian Backer,
William Radcliff,
H. Waldorph, Jr.,
Henrich Benner,
Philip Hermanse,
Thomas Lewis,
Hendrick Livey,
Everhart Rynders,
Henry Kuncke,
George Stetting,
Elias Hinneon,
Samuel Haines,
, Peter Ledwyck,
Jacob Elmendorph,
Jan Elmendorph,
Patt Hogan,
Evert Hermanse,
, John Cole,
Petrus Pitcher,
Zacharias Root,
Edward Wheeler,
Peter Hoffman,
William Beringer,
Conrad Berringer,
Henry Klum, Jr.,
C. Osterhout,
Peter Cole,
Simon Kole,
Jacob Maul,
Everardus Bogardus,
Simon Westfall,
Jacob Tremper,
Henry Titemor,
John Mares,
James Ostrander,
Christover Weaver,
Peter Westfall, Jr..
Henry Gissebergh,
W. Van Vraden-
burgh,
Jacob Kip,
James Lewis,
Peter DeWitt,
John Pawling,
Alburtus Sickner,
Andrew Bowen,
Martin us Burger,
Johannes Scutt,
Jacob Sickner, Jr.,
Barent Van Wage-
nen,
William Dillman,
Cornelius Miller,
Simon Millham,
John Weaver, Jr.,
THE I5KKKMAN FAMILY
5.
Benjamin Osterhout,
Henry Burgess, Jr.,
Uriah Bates,
William McClure,
Joshua Chamber,
Jacob Sickner,
J. Van Aken,
Peter Van Aken,
Jacob N. Schryver,
Peter Radcliff,
C. Wenneberger,
Jacob P'olant,
Abraham Kip,
Peter Brown,
Jacob Schultz,
John Hoffman,
Jacob Maul, Jr.,
B. Van Steenburgh,
Johannes Van Ren-
sen,
Tobias Van Keuren,
John Klum,
Godfrey Hendrick,
Jacob Beringer,
John Bender,
Zacharias White-
man,
Joseph Hebert,
William Schultz,
John Blair,
Thomas Greves,
Michael Schatzel,
Peter Schopp,
Hendrick Moore,
Herrick Berger,
Johannes Turk,
John White, Jr.,
John Cowles,
Herman Duncan,
John Dcnness,
William Waldron,
Cornelius Demonci,
S. Van Benschoten,
B. Van Vraden-
burgh,
Peter Scoot,
Jonathan Scoot,
John Mitchell,
Simon Scoot, Jr.,
William Scoot, Jr.,
Jacob Lewis,
Jacobus Kip,
William Skepmus,
J ohannes P.V.Wood,
John Haas,
P. Vradenburgh,
CHAPTER X.
R. J. Kip,
David Mulford,
Lemuel Mulford,
Paul Gruber,
Solomon Powell,
Henry Bull,
George Bull,
William Powell,
Casper Haberlan,
Thomas Humphrey,
Christopher Denirah,
Abraham Westfall,
John McP'ort,
William Carney,
Philip Feller, Jr.,
Nicholas Bonesteel,
Philip Bonesteel,
Zach. Neer,
Nicholas Stickel,
Abraham Scott,
William Troophage,
Alexander Campbell,
R. Van Hoverburgh,
John Rogers,
Nicholas Stickel,
Jacob Teil,
John Satin,
Henry Fraleigh, Jr.
THE BEEKMAN FAMILY.
William Beekman, the father of the patentee of Ryn
Beek, we are told by those who ought to know, came to New
Amsterdam, now New York, with Governor Stuyvesant, in
1647; that he was born in Holland, of German ancestry, on
the 28th of April, 1623 ; that he married Catherine DeBough,
in the city of New York, on the 25th of September, 1649, by
whom, he had seven children — three sons and four daughters ;
and that he died in the city of New York in 1707, in the 85th
year of his age. In 1653, '54, ''55, '56, '57 he was elected one
of the schepens (assistant aldermen) of New Amsterdam. On
the i8th of October, 1658, he was appointed vice-governor on
the Delaware; on the 4th of July, 1664, he was elected sheriff
54 HISTORY OF RHINEBKrK.
of Esopus, now Kingston. On the i6th of August, 1647, he
was elected burgomaster of New Amsterdam, the Dutch having
recovered, and restored the old name to the city during this
year. He was alderman at twelve different dates under the
English, until 1696, when he withdrew from public life. The
old New York records tell us that the business by which he
lived and prospered was that of a brewer. His sons were
Henry, Gerard and John. Henry, the eldest, was the patentee
of Ryn Beek, and therefore the one with whom we have spe-
cially to do.
Henry Beekman married Joanna DeLopes, and settled in
Kingston, Ulster County, where he became county judge, mem-
ber of the legislature, colonel of the militia, and deacon and
elder of the Reformed Dutch Church. Having a son Henry,
he has been mistaken for his own father by Peter A. Jay and
others. He never lived in Rhinebeck, but it was he who laid
out the land for the " High Dutchers," and settled on his
patent the Palatines who founded Rhinebeck, and gave the
name to the town. He died in 1716, certainly not above sixty-
six years old ; and there are very few deeds over his own signa-
ture extant. The lands to the German families were laid out as
early as 17 14, but the deeds were given on the 20th of October,
1718, by the heirs. He had four children, as follows: William,
born at Kingston in 1681, died in Holland, aged eighteen;
Catharine, born September 16, 1683, married John Rutsen, of
Kingston; Henry, born in 1688, married Janet Livingston, the
daughter of Robert, a nephew of Robert, the patentee, and
first lord of the manor of Livingston ; Cornelia, born 1690,
married Gilbert Livingston, son of Robert, the lord of the
manor.
John Rutsen was living in 1720, and witnessed a deed in
this year as justice of the peace in Kingston, from Hendricus
Heermance to Gerrit Aartsen. There is no evidence that he
ever had a residence in Rhinebeck; he died before 1726. In
this year his widow, Catharine Beekman, at the age of fort)^-
three, married Albert Pawling, of Kingston. Albert Pawling
died in 1745. We have no evidence that he lived or died in
Rhinebeck, and presume he did not, his name not being found
DESCENDANTS OF CATrrARFNE RKEKMAN. 55
among the freeholders in the census of 1740. We have a letter
in Dutch from Henry Beekman, in New York, to his sister,
Mrs. Catharine Pawling, in Rhinebeck, dated 1746. We assume,
therefore, that she was a resident in Rhinebeck at this date;
but in what particular locality we have not learned.
John Rutsen and Catharine Beekman had four children
baptised in Kingston, as follows: Johanna, born April 1 1, 1714;
Jacob, born April 29, 1716; Hendrick, born March 9, 1718;
Catharine, born May 24, 17 19. Albert Pawling and Catharine
Beekman Rutsen had no children.
Jacob Rutsen, son of John Rutsen and Catharine Beekman,
married his cousin Alida, daughter of Gilbert Livingston and
Cornelia Beekman. We are told that he built the mill known
as Rutsen's mill, on the premises now owned by Mrs. Mary R.
Miller. This mill was in existence in 1750 as Rutsen's mill.
How much, if any earlier, we have not learned. Jacob Rutsen
died before 1755, and, therefore, before he was forty years old.
He was not a freeholder in the town in 1740, when he was
twenty-four years old. If he built the mill after he became of
age, he built it after 1737. We assume that he built it when
he became a resident of the town, and, therefore, after 1740.
Jacob Rutsen and Alida Livingston had two children, as
follows: John, born October 23, 1745 ; Cornelia, born May 31,
1746. He died after this date, and his widow, after 1755, mar-
ried Henry Van Rensselaer, of Claverack, by whom she had
seven children.
Catharine Rutsen, daughter of John Rutsen and Catharine
Beekman, married Peter Ten Broeck. They lived in Rhine-
beck as early as 175 i, he being a road master here at this date.
He and his mother-in-law, Catharine Pawling, lived in the same
district when the census was taken in 1755, and may have lived
together. They did not live in the same district with the
widow Alida Rutsen. In 1765 he lived on the Barrytown road,
his gate being the end of the road district from the post road,
William Feller being road master. He, therefore, lived north
of the Feller homestead. He was supervisor of the precinct
in 1763, '64, '65, '66, '67. He and his wife, Catharine Rutsen,
stood sponsors at the baptism of Catharine, the daughter of
56 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
John Rutsen and Phebe Carman, in the German Reformed
Church at Pink's Corner, in 1768. This church was on the
lands which fell to Mrs. Pawling in the division of the Beek-
man estate, and we presume it had the support of her family.
In 1775 Peter Ten Broeck and his wife conveyed to William
Sohepmoes par.t of the farm now occupied by Thomas Reed ;
and in the same year we find him colonel of a regiment of
Dutchess County soldiers. If they had children, we have not
learned the fact. And beyond their baptism, we have no
knowledge of Johanna and Hendrick, the other two children
of John Rutsen and Catharine Beekman.
John Rutsen, son of Jacob Rutsen and Alida Livingston,
married Phebe Carman. They had two children, as follows:
Catharine, born September 18, 1768; Sarah, born 1770. John
Rutsen, we are told, died aged twenty-eight years, and there-
fore in the year 1773. His widow married Robert Sands, Jan-
uary 25, 1779, by whom she had five children, as follows: Chris-
tina, Joshua C, John R., Eliza, Grace. Phebe Carman died
November 23, 1819, aged seventy-two years. Robert Sands
died March 3, 1825, aged eighty years.
Catharine Rutsen. daughter of John Rutsen and Phebe
Carman, married George Suckley, an English merchant in the
city of New York, by whom she had seven children, as follows :
Rutsen, Mary, Elizabeth, George, Sarah, Catharine and Thom-
as. George died at nine, and Catharine at nineteen years.
George Suckley was a widower when he married Catharine
Rutsen, with two children, George and John L. Suckley.
Sarah Rutsen, daughter of John Rutsen and Phebe Car-
man, married Philip J. Schuyler. He v^as the son of General
Philip Schuyler; built the mansion now the property of his
niece, Mrs. Mary R. Miller; was a resident of Rhinebeck, and
a member of Congress from Dutchess County in 18 17, '18.
They had five children, as follows: Philip P., John Rutsen,
Catharine, Robert, Stephen. Sarah Rutsen Schuyler died Oc-
tober 24, 1805, aged thirty-five years. Philip J. Schuyler mar-
ried for a second wife Mary Anna Sawyer, by whom he had
three children, as follows : William, died aged twenty-two
years ; George, married Eliza Hamilton ; Sybel, died aged four
GENEALOGY OF HENRY BEEKMAN. 57
years. Philip J. Schuyler, born January 21, 1768 ; died in the
city of New York, February 21, 1835.
Philip P. Schuyler married Rosanna, daughter of Abraham
Livingston, and thus a great granddaughter of Robert, the
nephew, and a distant relative of the late Hon. Peter R. Liv-
ingston, of this town. A gentleman at our elbow says he fought
a duel with a British officer, and killed his antagonist. He died
May 6, 1822, aged thirty-three years. Livingston Schuyler, a
gentleman well known in Rhinebeck as " Lev. Schuyler," was
his son. John Rutsen Schuyler died, unmarried, June 22, 181 3,
at the age of twenty-two ; Catharine Schuyler married Samuel
Jones. She died November 20, 1829, aged thirty-six years.
Robert Schuyler, distinguished as a railroad operator and officer,
married, we do not know whom, and died, we do not know
where. Stephen Schuyler married Catherine M. Morris. He
was born April 18, 1801. He was a local Methodist preacher.
He was at one time the owner of the farm now the property
of John H. Lambert. He was highly respected, and died in
Livingston street, this village, in a house now owned by Henry
Clay Williams, November i, 1859. And thus far do we trace
the descendants of Catherine Beekman, daughter of Henry,
the patentee.
Henry Beekman and Janet Livingston had two children,
as follows: Henry, baptised May 13, 1722, died young; Mar-
garet, baptised March i, 1724, married Robert R. Livingston,
the grandson of Robert, the lord of the manor. Janet Living-
ston, the wife of Henry Beekman, born in 1703, died in 1724,
and thus at the early age of twenty-one years. Born in 1688,
Henry Beekman was fifteen years her senior when he married
her, and thirty-six years old when she died. He married a
second time, and took for his second wife Gertrude Van Cort-
landt, by whom he had no children. He became a resident of
Rhinebeck after 1728, and probably not until after his second
marriage. The old Kip house, of which he became the owner
in 1726, was, in the meantime, greatly enlarged, and became
his mansion when he became a resident of Rhinebeck. He
died January 3, 1776, aged eighty-eight years. There is a tra-
dition among the people here that he died in Rhinebeck, and
58 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
was buried under the old edifice of the Reformed Dutch
Church. His first wife was certainly not buried in Rhinebeck,
and if his second wife was, we have no knowledge of the fact.
His sisters, Catherine and Cornelia, were not buried here, so
far as we can learn. There is a tradition that he had a residence
in Kingston as well as Rhinebeck, and that he spent his winters
there. He died in the winter, and we deem it probable that
he died in Kingston and was buried there in a family vault or
burying plot. If he was buried under the Rhinebeck church,
there should have been, and, we think, there would have been,
a tablet or monument stating the fact. We have not learned
who became the occupant of the Rhinebeck mansion immedi-
ately after Henry Beekman's death. Pero Van Cortlandt was
road master " from the Hog bridge to Beekman's mills, and
from thence to Kip's ferry," in 1778. We assume that he was
a relative, if not a brother, of Mrs. Henry Beekman, and that
he was living in the Rhinebeck mansion, in charge of her affairs,
at this date. We infer from documents that have come under
our notice, that Henry Beekman made a will ; that he left all
his Rhinebeck estate to his daughter during her life, and allotted
it to her children at her death. Col. Henry Beekman Living-
ston, his grandson, was road master from the Hog bridge to
Livingston mills, and from thence to the river, in 1786; and
we assume that from this date on to that of his death, he was
the occupant of the Beekman mansion, and the owner of the
Beekman mills. The lands attached to the mills, embracing
about forty acres, were surveyed and laid out for him in 1796.
We have not learned the day or year of Margaret Beek-
man's birth. She joined the Reformed Dutch Church on
Rhinebeck Flatts, in 1742, as Margaret Beekman, and, there-
fore, before her marriage. We are told she married at eighteen
years of age. Assuming that she married in the same year in
which she joined the church, we get 1724. the year of her
mother's death, as the year of her birth. She, therefore, never
knew a mother. Mrs. Delafield says : " The orphan child found
another mother in her aunt Angelica (her mother's sister), and
another home in Flatbush." We have said that Robert R.
Livingston, her husband, was the grandson of the older Robert.
JUDGE ROBERT R, I,IVIN(}STON. 59
He was the only child of his father. He and his father died
in the same year — 1775. His father, born in 1688, attained the
age of eighty-seven ; he,*born in 17 19, attained the age of fifty-
six years. By the death of his father, he became the owner of
all the land of Clermont, and, Mrs. Delafield says, "of one-fifth
of the great Hardenburgh patent." He was a justice of the
Supreme Court of the colony, and a member of the Stamp Act
Congress. He was a man of prominence and influence in the
affairs of State in his day. Having espoused the cause of the
people against the government, he was greatly distressed at the
loss sustained by the patriots at Bunker Hill, receiving a shock
which carried him to his grave. Mrs. Delafield says: " In De-
cember, 1775, Mrs. Robert R. Livingston was summoned to the
death-bed of her father, Col. Beekman. He had not yet
breathed his last, when a message arrived from Clermont that
the judge was alarmingly ill. She hastened to her husband,
but she was too late." An intelligent old lady in our town
says, " Margaret Beekman (Mrs. Robert R. Livingston) told her
father the judge was dead when the messenger left, and she
compelled him to tell her the fact as soon as they got on the
road." Mrs. Delafield says he died intestate, and that, accord-
ing to the English law of descent, his eldest son, Robert, after-
ward the chancellor, succeeded to his landed estate ; and, as
soon as circumstances permitted the division to be made, " the
youthful heir gave thirty thousand acres to each of his three
brothers, and twenty thousand to each of his six sisters in the
Hardenburgh patent." He thus disposed of two hundred and
ten thousand acres of land, retaining the thirteen thousand
contained in the town of Clermont, and we do not know how
many more in the great Hardenburgh patent, in his own pos-
session.
We are told when General Vaughn had burned Kingston,
on his way up the Hudson, in 1777, to succor General Burgoyne
on his way down from Canada, he landed a portion of his army on
the east side of the Hudson, who, when they had burned Rhine-
beck, proceeded by land as far as Clermont, where they burned
the mansion of Margaret Beekman Livingston. We do not
think they came up as high as the Flats, and cannot conceive
6o HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
where they found a Rhinebeck to burn. We are told shots
were fired at the Beekman mansion from the fleet ; that one of
them pierced the wall and left the hole still to be seen in the
west gable ; and that others lodged in the hillside near the
river, where they were afterward plowed out. We do not learn
that they were preserved in the archives of the town, or that
they are now anywhere on exhibition. We have learned that
Barent Van Wagenen, who lived on the Hutton place, aban-
doned the premises when the fleet came in sight, being an
earnest patriot. Returning, on horseback, a few days later, to
look after his stock, he discovered a boat-load of Britishers
approaching the shore, and at once showed them the heels of
his horse in a rapid retreat. The speed of his horse being
insufficient to satisfy his supposed necessities, he abandoned
it and took to his own heels. If they burned his houses and
barns, and carried off his stock, the fact has not been recorded.
Robert R, Livingston and Margaret Beekman had ten
children, as follows: Janet, born in 1744, died on November 6,
1828, and thus in the eighty-fourth year of her age; Robert R.,
born in 1747, died on February 25, 1813, and thus in the sixty-
sixth year of his age; Margaret, born in 1749, died on March
19, 1823, and thus in the seventy-fourth year of her age ; Henry
B., born in 1750, died in 1831, and thus in the eighty-first year
of his age; Catharine, born on October 14, 1752, died on July
14, 1849, ^^^ thus in the ninety-seventh year of her age ; John
R., born in 1754, died in 1851, and thus in the ninety-seventh
year of his age ; Gertrude, born in 1757, died in 1833, and thus
in the seventy-sixth year of her age; Joanna, born on Septem-
ber 17, 1759, died on March i, 1829, and thus in the seventieth
year of her age ; Alida, born in 1760, died on December 25, 1822,
and thus in the sixty-second year of her age ; Edward, born in
1764, died on May 23, 1836, and thus in the seventy-second year
of his age.
MRS. JANET MONTGOMERY.
Janet Livingston, the daughter of Robert R. Livingston
and Margaret Beekman, married General Richard Montgomery
in July, 1773; he in the thirty-seventh year of his age, and she
in the twenty-ninth year of her age. Very soon after their
GENERAL MONTGOMERY'S HOUSE. 6l
marriage they moved to Rhinebeck Flats, on the domain of
her grandfather, Colonel Henry Beekman, and occupied the
house on the premises of Thomas Edgerley, which he took down
and re-erected on East Livingston street, in i860. This was
their residence when the general took command of the expedi-
tion against Canada, and lost his life in the assault on Quebec,
December 31, 1775. And this is why the part of the post road
on which this house stood is now Montgomery street, in the
village of Rhinebeck.
THE HOUSE THE GENERAL BUILT.
before the war, the general had commenced the erection
of a mansion on the premises which are now the property of
Lewis Livingston, south of this village.
Mrs. Martha J. Lamb, in her " Homes of America," has
made the mistake of assuming that the house built by Mrs.
Montgomery above Barrytown, in Red Hook, after the death
of her mother, and, therefore, after 1800, and known as " Mont-
gomery Place," was the house built by the General before he
entered the army. This is corrected in the history of the
Rhinebeck house, which follows :
" The place now known as * Grasmere ' originally formed
part of the Beekman patent, and was included in the part of
it which fell to Henry Beekman, Jr., when, after his father's
death, the property was divided among him and his two sisters.
Through what hands the property may have passed before we
find it in possession of a descendant of Colonel Beekman we
do not know, as there are no deeds to be found, and there are
none on record in the county office at Poughkeepsie, relating
to this property. The first we certainly learn of it is in 1773,
when General Montgomery was in possession, and built mills
upon it and caused it to be laid out and planted by his nephew,
Mr. Jones, a son of Lord Ranelaugh, who married General
Montgomery's sister. The house was planned and begun
under the General's auspices, but he did not live to see it
finished.
" In the notes written by Mrs. Montgomery to serve as
material for a memoir of her husband, which we have in a pam-
62 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
phlet edited by Miss Louise L. Hunt, now in possession of the
family papers by the will of their inheritrix, the late Cora
Livingston Barton, daughter of Edward Livingston, of New
Orleans, brother and heir of Mrs. Montgomery, we find these
lines: 'In July, 1773, he was married. He then removed to
Rhinebeck and laid the foundation of a house.'* From the
same source, in a letter to his wife, dated at camp near St.
John's, October 9th, he says : ' You must not go into the house
until I return.' And again, Montreal, November 24th : * I long
to see you in your new house. If the winter sets in soon, don't
forget to send for the lath to fence the garden, and, also, to
have chestnut posts cut for the same purpose. I wish you
could have a stove fixed in the hall, they are the most comfort-
able things imaginable.' And, from Holland House, near
Quebec, December 5th, in the last letter he ever wrote, he says :
' I am glad to hear your house is in such forwardness. May I
have the pleasure of seeing you in it soon.' In his will, copied
still from the same pamphlet, he says: ' I leave to my said wife,
the farm I purchased from Shaver, at Ryn Beek, with horses
and everything upon it.' Dated, August 30, 1775.
"After the General's death, the house was occupied by Mrs.
Montgomery, who was accustomed to walk around the farm
with the seeds of the locust (pseudacacia), then a new tree in
this country, in her pocket, and strew them along the fences.
From these seeds have come the numerous fine locusts now on
the place. After a time she desired a house on the river bank,
and built the house known as ' Montgomery Place,' above
Barrytown, where she resided until her death. f Grasmere, then
called Rhinebeck House, as we find from the date of a letter
written by Mrs. Montgomery, was rented to Lady Kitty Duer
(Lord Sterling's daughter) and her family. And here was born
the late William Alexander Duer, some time president of Co-
lumbia College, in New York. After that it was rented to
*A part of a house, said to have belonged to General Montgomery, is still
standing at King's Bridge, Westchester Co., N. Y.
•)•" Montgomery Place * * * the house which Mrs. Montgomery
erected about the beginning of the present century." — Hunt's Life of Edward
Livingston, pa_^es 2iSS--^-
MRS. MONTGOMERY'S WILL. 63
Mrs. Montgomery's brother-in-law, General Morgan Lewis, who
occupied it nine years. After the expiration of General Lewis'
lease, Mrs. Montgomery sold the property to her sister Joanna,
the wife of Peter R. Livingston, who lived here five and twenty
years. During their occupancy, the house burned down, in
1828. It was rebuilt; but Mrs. Peter R. Livingston died be-
fore the new building was finished.
"Peter R. Livingston died here in 1847, and, having no
children, bequeathed all his property to his brother, Maturin,
who, dying the following year, left it to his wife, Margaret
Lewis Livingston, who gave the Grasmere estate to her son,
Lewis Livingston, who has lived on it since 1850. In i860 he
inherited from his mother a farm of two hundred and eighty
acres adjoining the Grasmere farm, and incorporated it with
it, the whole property now including eight hundred and ninety-
eight acres. In 1861-2 the house was rebuilt and enlarged, and
a third story added."
In a spacious and elegantly-furnished room in this now
very handsome and stately mansion, are to be seen the hang-
ings of Gobelin tapestry brought out by Chancellor Livingston
when he returned from his mission to France.
Mrs. Montgomery's death and funeral obsequies are well
remembered by the old residents of Rhinebeck. All who could
do so attended, and all who wished had access to the larder
and wine cellar, and all who were predisposed to excess came
home intoxicated. Her remains were deposited in the vault
at Clermont, and we presume the funeral sermon was preached
by the Rev. George W. Bethune, who was the pastor in charge
of the church at the Flats at the time.
MRS. MONTGOMERY'S WILL.
Mrs. Montgomery had no children. By the will of her
mother, and probably her grandfather, Henry Beekman, she
owned the Rhinebeck Flats and adjacent lands ; and by her
will,. dated September 19, 1823, and proved April 29, 1829, she
thus disposes of them :
"And I do further devise and bequeath to my said brother,
Edward Livingston, all the real estate I may own at Rhinebeck
64 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
Flatts, at the time of my decease, extending to the south so
far as to include the farm of Thomas Hyslop, and to the north
so far as to include all my land at the Flatts ; and to extend
to the eastward to include the farm of Conrad Lasher, the
lands occupied by Henry Norris and Peter A. Ackert ; the farm
held under lease by the heirs of Isaac Davis ; the lot occupied
by Paul Dixon ; and the several farms occupied by Andrew
Teal."
CHANCELLOR LIVINGSTON.
Robert R. Livingston, second child of Robert R. Living-
ston and Margaret Beekman, having received a thorough edu-
cation, graduating at Kings, now Columbia College, in the city
of New York, studied law under his kinsman, William Living-
ston, and was admitted to the bar in 1 773. He was, for a short
time, a business partner of John Jay. He was appointed re-
corder of the city of New York under the crown in 1773, retain-
ing the office two years, when he lost it on account of his sym-
pathy with the revolutionary spirit of his countrymen. He
was a delegate from New York to the Congress of 1776, and
was one of the committee to draft the Declaration of Independ-
ence, which failed to receive his signature because he was absent
in New York, of the convention of which he was a member.
He was a member of Congress again, and appointed Secretary
of Foreign Affairs in 1781. He was appointed the first Chancel-
lor of the State of New York, in 1785, and held the office until
1801, when he resigned it to accept the office of Minister to
France, where he was one of the commissioners who negotiated
the purchase of Louisiana ; out of which we now have the
States of Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, Iowa, Minnesota and
Kansas. He was a member of the convention held in Pough-
keepsie, in 1788, to decide on the adoption of the Constitution
of the United States, and administered the oath of office to
George Washington, as the first President thereunder, in the
city of New York, on the 30th of April, 1789.
While in France he made the acquaintance of Robert
Fulton, whom, from this time on, he assisted with his money
and practical intelligence in the invention and construction of
the steamboat. In 1807 they put the first steamboat afloat on
CHANCELLOR LIVINCISTON. 65
the Hudson river, and named her " Clermont," after the chan-
cellor's country seat, a short distance north of Tivoli. His is
one of the statues of its two most eminent citizens placed in
the capitol of the nation, at Washington, by the State of New
York. He is represented as standing erect, his form mantled
by his robe of ofifice, which falls in graceful folds from his
shoulders, the right hand bearing a scroll inscribed " Lou-
isiana."
He married Mary Stevens, daughter of John Stevens, of
New Jersey, by whom he had two children, as follows: Eliza-
beth S., married Edward P. Livingston ; Margaret M., married
Robert L. Livingston.
Hamilton Child, in his Gazetteer of Columbia County, says
the chancellor's grandfather, after receiving his estate (after
1728), "built a large stone house at Clermont, which he gave
to his son, Robert R., in his old age." This house, he says
" was located at the mouth upon the north side of Roeliff Jan-
sen's creek." If this were true, the house had been built in
the town of Livingston instead of that of Clermont. He con-
founds the ol'd manorhouse built by the first Robert, in 1699,
with that built by his son, north of Tivoli, and which was
burned by the British in the Revolution. The house was rebuilt
at once, the old side walls being used, and, we presume, the old
plan retained. And yet, the writer, in the same paragraph in
which he gives us this information, says: " Mr. Livingston also
built another house, after the close of the war, a little north of
the ruins of the former one." The old house having been re-
built at once, there were no ruins of the former one left ; and
Mr. Livingston dying two years before the old one was burned
did not build another after the close of the war. The second
house was built by the chancellor, soutli of the old one, in what
was then the town of Rhinebeck, and, therefore, in Dutchess
County. We remember very well when the two houses were
occupied by the chancellor's sons-in-law — the north and older
one by Edward P., and the south one, the chancellor's home-
stead, by Robert L. Livingston. They are both on the banks
of the Hudson, and charming for situation. The view of the
Catskill Mountains is very fine, and, though in different
66 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
counties, they are near together, and in view of each other.
They are nearly opposite to what was then Bristol, and is now
Maiden, in Ulster County, on the opposite side of the river.
General Lafayette stopped at Robert L. Livingston's on his
visit to the United States, in 1824, and gave a reception on his
lawn to the people of the surrounding country. We are told
they came in thousands, from both sides of the river, and from
distant places. We have people still living in Rhinebeck who
helped to swell the crowd, and shook the General's hand.
MARGARET LI V I NGSTON,
the third child of Robert R. Livingston and Margaret Beek-
man, was married to Dr. Thomas Tillotson, of Maryland, a
surgeon in the Revolutionary Army, by Rev. Stephanus Van
Voorhees, of the Rhinebeck Reformed Dutch Church, on the
twenty-second of February, 1779. It is said, we think on the
authority of the late Miss Mary Garrettson, that they were at
one time the occupants of the Grasmere mansion as the tenants
of Mrs. Montgomery. If this be true, it must have been before
1794, when our old town records place them at Linwood. Mrs.
Dalafield says the Linwood farm was once the property of her
grandmother, for which she received a lamb per year rent ; and
that she sold it to her sister, Mrs. Tillotson. We do not see
how this could be. Mr. Tillotson purchased the land on which
he erected the Linwood mansion from Isaac Van Etten, in
1790. The Van Etten land was on the patent of Arie Roosa &
Co., which never paid rent to the Beekmans. The older Henry
Beekman built a mill on the creek whiqh enters the river at this
point, and his son purchased six acres of land, on what is called
the " Neck " in old deeds, from Arie Roosa, immediately about
the mill. He deeded the mill to his son, Henry, in 1713; and
it may, through him, have become the property of his grand-
daughter, Mrs. Morgan Lewis, and been sold by her to her sis-
ter, subject to the rent named, of a lamb a year. We presumed
Mr. Tillotson had purchased the Van Etten farm because his
wife was the owner, or to become the owner, of the mill and the
adjacent lands by the deed of her mother. If the mill had
fallen to General Lewis, we think he would have retained it ;
COL. HENRY I!. I.TVI\( ;STON. 67
for he built anotlier on the same creek, in the immediate vicin-
ity, before? 1806.
Thomas Tillotson was a prominent man in the poHtics of
the State, soon after the close of the war. He was State Senator
from 1 791 to 1800, when he became Secretary of State, and
Robert Sands was elected Senator in his place. He retained
the office of Secretary of State until 1805, and held it again in
1807. He died in May, 1832.
Mrs. Tillotson was the best known, and is the best remem-
bered, of all Margaret Beekman's children by the old people of
Rhinebeck. Though a member of the Reformed Dutch Church,
her good will and kindly deeds were not limited to the brother-
hood and sisterhood of her church, and her praises are spoken
by all who remember her. Her funeral sermon was preached
by Rev. David Parker. It was printed in pamphlet form, and
copies of it are still preserved among the things cherished by
families in the town. Her body, and that of her husband, were
deposited in the vault in the rear of the Dutch Reformed
Church, in this village. They had five children, one dying
young. The others were: Jannette, born in 1786; married
Judge James Lynch ; died on August, 26, 1866, and was buried
in Rhinebeck. Robert L., born in 1788; died in Rhinebeck,
July 22, 1877; was buried in New York. John C, born May
16, 1791 ; died in New York, December 18, 1867; was buried
in Rhinebeck. John C. retained Linwood ; Robert L. built the
house at Tivoli, now owned by Johnson Livingston ; Howard,
the youngest son, entered the navy as a midshipman and was
killed in battle on Lake Erie, in the War of 1812.
COLONEL H.A.RRV.
Henry B. Livingston, the fourth child of Judge Robert R.
Livingston and Margaret Beekman, was the first Livingston in
what is now the town of Rhinebeck. Among the warrants
issued by the Provincial Congress in June, 1775, to persons in
Dutchess County to recruit for the Revolutionary Army, we find
the following: Henry B. Livingston, captain ; Jacob Thomas,
first lieutenent ; Roswell Wilcox, second lieutenant.
In Holgate's genealogy of Leonard Bleaker, we are told
that on the first of January, 1777, the army being newly organ-
68 HISTORY OF RHINEBFXK.
ized he was appointed first lieutenant in the fourth New York
Regiment, under Col. Henry B. Livingston.
Mrs. Delafield says: " Congress voted him a sword in com-
pliment to his bravery. He was a fine-looking man, and not
even his brother, the chancellor, surpassed him in the manly
courtesy of his address. He married Miss Ann Horn Shippen,
niece to Henry Lee, president of the first Congress. The pe-
culiarities of this unhappy lady, which led to her separation
from her husband, became in time, insanity." His only child,
by his wife, Margaret B., inherited the old Beekman homestead
and farm, and leased them to Andrew J. Heermance, in 1832,
for ten years. Before the expiration of this lease she sold them
to her cousin, John Armstrong, Jr., who, in turn, sold them to
Mr. Heermance, the lessee. She died in Philadelphia in 1864.
Colonel Harry's remains, we are told, were deposited in the
vault in the rear of the Reformed Dutch Church in this village.
Colonel Harry was also the owner, from 1796, of the two
grist mills in the south of the village, and also of an oil mill on
the site of the grist mill below the " Sand hill, now in the occu-
pation of Mr. P. Fritz,
When Margaret Beekman gave to her son, Henry B., the
land includin the mills below the village, she made a deed to
cover sixteen hundred and thirteen acres in lot No. 16 in the
Beekman grant in the south of the county; also four acres of
meadow land at the Buco bush, reserved in a former convey-
ance for the use of the Miller and Kelder farm ; also a piece of
land on the Vvxst side of the road near the house formerly oc-
cupied by \Vm. Van Vredenburgh, containing about four acres.
On the Rhinebeck premises she reserved the rents to herself
during her life. He also received from his brother, the chan-
cellor, a deed for 3,000 acres in the Hardenburgh patent (on
record in Poughkeepsie).
MRS. CATHARINP: CrARRETTSON.
Catharine Livingston, the fifth child of Judge Robert R.
Livingston and Margaret Beekman, married the Rev. Freeborn
Garrettson, celebrated in his day as an earnest and devoted
preacher in the Methodist Church. We are told that he came
MRS. CATHERINE GARRETTSON. 69
to Rhinebeck on the invitation of Dr. Thomas Tillotson, who
knew him in their native State of Maryland; and that while a
guest at the doctor's house, which was at this time the Gras-
mere or Montgomery mansion, he preached to the people of the
neighborhood in the stone house on the post road, which is now
the propert}- of Mrs. Ann O'Brien. It was on the occasion of
this visit that he made the acquaintance of Catharine Living-
ston, she being on a visit at her sister's residence, which ripened
into love and marriage, in the year 1793, and brought Mr. Gar-
rettson permanently into the town of Rhinebeck.
Mr. and Mrs. Garrettson commenced housekeeping on a farm*
which was a gift from her mother, east of Mrs. Mary R. Miller's.
Having tarried here for four or five years, and built a small
Methodist church on the main road, near their residence, they
exchanged farms with Mr. Johannes Van Wagenen, father of
Captain William Van Wagenen, of this village, whose farm was
on the Artsen & Co.'s patent, and thus with a frontage on the
Hudson River, and in the near vicinity of the residence of her
sister, Mrs. Tillotson. They at once built a new, large and
handsome house on these premises, and entered it in the month
of October, 1799. It is now *' WilderclifT," on the banks of the
Hudson, and one of the celebrated country seats in the town of
Rhinebeck. Mrs. Olin says: "How many who have enjoyed
the genial hospitalities of this house will recall the dignified
form of the hostess, with her marked features, her soft, hazel
eyes, the brown hair parted under the close-fitting cap, with its
crimped muslin border, and the neatly-fitting dress, always sim-
ple and yet always becoming ! No one would have imagined
that this was the gay young lady that had been asked for in the
dance by General Washington."
An intelligent old lady in the neighborhood says " Mrs.
Garrettson was the most aristocratic of all her sisters." Of
course, by her birth and position, Mrs. Garrettson was excluded
from familiar intercourse with the mass of the people, and it did
not fall to their lot to know to what extent the unfortunate and
suffering engaged her sympathies. The working man and wo-
man, who are self-supporting, never in need or distress, have no
points of contact with the higher grades of society, and of
yo HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
necessity know very little of them. They come doivji only to
visit the sick, feed the hungry and clothe the naked ; and to the
working people, who are neither sick, hungry or naked, they are
of no cay-tJily account, when they are not customers. From
what we have seen and heard of, and read about Mrs. Garrett-
son, we infer that she was, by the strength of her faith, under
the power of the unknown world to a greater extent than falls
to the common lot of religious people ; and we think this fact
is amply attested by her marriage with the Rev. Freeborn Gar-
rettson, who is remembered among our people for nothing save
the simplicity of his faith, and the fervor of his piety. He was
in. nothing like the husbands chosen by Mrs. Garrettson's bril-
liant sisters. They were all earnest patriots and intelligent
politicians, and thus more under the power of the world that
now is, and the things that are present and real. Mr. and Mrs.
Garretson married when they were both above forty-one years
of age, and had one only child — the late Miss Mary Garrettson
— who was dwarfed in stature, but possessed of a mind of full
strength, which had been thoroughly and, we presume, system-
atically cultivated. She never married, and died on the 6th of
March, 1879. 1^°^" o" the 8th of September, 1794, she was in
the eighty-fifth year of her age. She was hurried with her
father and mother in a vault attached to the Methodist Episco-
pal Church in this village, of which she was a member and
liberal supporter.
JOHN R. LIVINGSTON.
John R. Livingston, the sixth child of Judge Robert R.
Livingston and Margaret Beekman, was twice married: first to
Margaret Sheafee, of Boston, by whom he had no children ;
and, second, to Eliza McEvers, by whom he had eight, as follows
— Robert Montgomery, married Sarah Bache, granddaughter
of Leonard Lispenard, of New York; Angelica, died unmar-
ied ; Dr. Edward, married Sarah Suckley, daughter of George
Suckley ; John R., married Mary McEvers, daughter of
Charles McEvers, of New York; Charles, died, unmarried;
Serena, married Col. George Croghan, of the United States
Army ; Eliza, married Captain Benjamin Page, of the United
States Army ; Margaret, married Captain Lowndes Brown, of
the United States Army.
MRS. ckrtrudp: lewis. 71
So far as we can learn, John R. Livingston was never an
officer, civil or military, in the service of the government. We
are told that he was a merchant in the city of New York, and,
as such, not very successful. " Massena," the beautiful country
seat at Barrytown, now the property of Mrs. Aspinwall, was
built by him, probably in 1797. Mrs. Delafield says this house,
in the early part of the centur}% " disputed with Clermont the
honor of being considered the show-place of the Hudson River."
He purchased the land on which it was built, some two hundred
acres, from Peter Contine, Jr., on the third of June, 1796.
We cannot learn that John R. Livingston obtained a share
of the land which fell to his mother in what are now the towns
of Rhinebeck and Red Hook. The Beekman grant in the
south-east of the county, which comprised the present towns of
Beekman, Pawling, Dover, and a part, if not all, of Lagrange, was
obtained by the elder Henry Beekman in the same year in which
he obtained that of Rhinebeck, and is included in the same royal
patent ; and in the former, as in the latter, he deeded to his son
a large number of the best acres before his death. Dying in-
testate, the son obtained a third of what was left, and thus the
lion's share of the two grants. In 1780 his daughter, and only
child, Margaret, had the lands falling to her in the south-east
of the county surveyed and subdivided into ten equal shares,
one for each of her children, in fulfillment of her father's will.
In May, 1785, she set over to her son, John R., the portion, or
a part of the portion, falling to him in this division.
CERTRUDE LIVINCSTON.
Gertrude Livingston, the seventh child of Judge Robert
R. Livingston and Margaret Beekman, married Morgan Lewis,
in May, 1779. They had one child, Margaret, born on the fifth
of February, 1780. This was Margaret Beekman's first grand-
child. She married Maturin Livingston on the twenty-ninth
of May, 1798.
Morgan was the son of Francis Lewis, a member of the
Continental Congress, in 1776, and a signer of the Declar-
ation of Independence. He was aid to General Gates and
Quartermaster-General of the Northern Army in the Revolu-
72 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
tionary War. He received a thorough education, and became a
lawyer. He was a member of the lower house in the State
Legislature in 1789-90-92, from the city of New York ; Attorney-
General in 1791, and Chief Justice in 1 801, from Rhinebeck. In
1804, he was elected Governor over Aaron Burr, and in 1807
was defeated by Daniel D. Tompkins.
Governor Lewis was State Senator for the Middle district,
which included Dutchess County, in 181 1-12-13-14. He was
made Quartermaster-General of the United States Army in 1812
by President Madison ; resigned the office in March, 181 3, and
accepted that of major-general ; and as such participated honor-
ably in the war with England, which was then waging.
The deed from Margaret Beekman to her daughter, Ger-
trude, for the Rhinebeck lands, bears date January 5, 1790, and
covers nearly, if not quite, all the lands deeded to Henry Beek-
man by his father, in 1713; and in the same year, Morgan
Lewis bought from Johannes Van Wagenen, for five dollars,
the privilege to build a dam in the creek where it ran against
his premises. He did not build the mill at once, and we do
not think before 1800. The road through Fox hollow was not
in existance in 1798, and there was no mill there at this date.
The road to Governor Lewis' landing is first named in our old
town records in 1806.
Governor Lewis' Staatsburgh mansion was not built on his
wife's Rhinebeck lands. It was built several miles further
south, in the town of Clinton, becoming Hyde Park in 1821.
He purchased these lands from the executor of Mrs. Lewis
Morris, of Morrisania, who was a daughter of Dr. Samuel Staats,
under a mortgage foreclosure, in 1792. We have not learned
when he built his house, but we have learned that it was de-
stroyed in 1832 by fire.
Governor Lewis died in the city of New York, on the 7th
of April, 1844, in the 90th year of his age. His remains were
interred in the Episcopal graveyard at Hyde Park, where a
unique and massive granite monument marks his resting place.
JOANNA LIVINGSTON.
Joanna Livingston, the eighth child of Robert R. Living-
ston and Margaret Beekman, married Peter R. Livingston,
JOANNA LIVINGSTON. 73
brother to Maturin Livingston, who married her niece, Mar-
garet Lewis. They had no children. She was the owner of the
Montgomery liouse below the village. The house burned, and
they moved into the village. It was rebuilt at once, but she
died before it was complete, in the house now owned by
Matthias VVurtz.
Peter R. Livingston was prominent in his day as a
politician, and, if not a statesman, he had taken an active part
in State affairs. He was a State Senator from Dutchess County
in 1820-21-22, and again in 1826-27-28-29. He is named as a
member of Assembly in 1823 in the civil list of the State. He
was president of the Whig National Convention which nominated
General William H. Harrison for President in 1840. He was
Secretary of Legation to General Armstrong, while the latter
was minister to France, and, we are told, married on his return
with the General, and settled in Rhinebeck, in the old Mont-
gomery mansion, which had become the property of his wife by
purchase from her sister, Mrs. Montgomery. This would bring
him into Rhinebeck in 181 2. We find his name in our old
town records for the first time as a roadmaster in 1813. We
do not know what property his wife owned in Rhinebeck be-
sides the Montgomery farm. Whatever it was, he had a deed
for it from her, and disposed of it by will, to the disappointment
of some of her relatives. He had lent Col. Harry money on
the mills, and obtained them by foreclosure of a mortgage in
1832. He died in 1847, ^"^ ^^s buried in the vault in the
rear of the Reformed Dutch Church in this village.
ALIDA LIVINGSTON.
Alida Livingston, ninth child of Robert R. Livingston
and Margaret Beekman, married John Armstrong in 1789.
They had five children, as follows : Horatio Gates; Henry Beek-
man ; John; Kosciusko; Margaret, married William B. Astor.
These children are all dead except Colonel Henry B., who is
living at an advanced age in the village of Red Hook, in the
paternal homestead. He served with distinction in the last
war with England.
Gen. Armstrong was born at Carlisle, in Pennsylvania, on
the twenty-fifth of November, 1758. He left the college at
74 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
Princeton at seventeen years of age, and joined the Revolution-
ary army as a volunteer, in a Pennsylvania regiment. He be-
came aide-de-camp to Gen. Horatio Gates, and served in the
campaign which ended in the capture of Burgoyne. He was
appointed adjutant general of the Southern Army, but falling
sick of a fever on the Pedee river, was succeeded by another.
Resuming his place as aide, he remained with General Gates to
the close of the war. He was Secretary of State, Adjutant Gen-
eral, and a member of the old Congress for the State of Penn.
sylvania, before 1787. After his marriage, in 1787, he took up
his residence in the State of New York.
He is named in a deed of land conveyed to him by Heer-
mance and Van Benthuysen, as a resident of Kingston. We
presume it was the land which is now the Bard place, at An-*
nandale. He owned these premises with the mill at Cedar
Hill, in 1797, and occupied the mansion, which we are told was
built by him. Of the three falls in the Sawkill, with eight acres
of adjacent lands, which were reserved by the three partners
who became the owners of three-fourths of the Schuyler patent,
and divided it among themselves in 1725, the one near the river
fell to Henry Beekman. In 1747 he conveyed this fall to his son-
in-law, Robert R. Livingston, who in the same year purchased
a second fall and four-fifteenth of the creek from Andrew Heer-
mance. Judge Livingston owned a mill at the river in 1770,
which, we are told, was burned by General Vaughan in October,
1777, when he burned the mansion of Margaret Beekman at
Clermont. At this date Judge Livingston and Henry Beek-
man had both been dead nearly two years, and Margaret Beek.
man Livingston, the widow of the former, and daughter of the
latter, was the owner of the mill at the mouth of the Sawkill,
and also of that in Tillottson's cove, and the Beekman house, in
this town. A New York loyalist writer blamed Vaughan for
"amusing himself burning residences on the river bank" when
he 'should have hastened to Albany. Lossing says : " A de-
tachment crossed the river and marched to Rhinebeck Flatts,
two miles to the eastward, where they burned several houses.
We have never been able to learn from authentic sources that
anything but mills aud storehouses were burned on this side of
ALIDA LIVINGSTON. 75
the river. It is incredible that they would pass the Beekman
house at the river and proceed two miles into the interior to
burn the harmless houses of comparatively innocent parties.
The storehouse of Colonel Petrus Ten Broeck, at Barrytown,
and the Livingston mill, a short distance above, were burned,
and they were in the precinct of Rhinebeck.
The falls in the Sawkill, with the mill at the river, were
deeded by Margaret Beekman to her daughter, Alida, in 1793,
subject to a rent during her life, but to become absolutely hers
at her death. John Armstrong at about the same time became
the owner of the Bard farm, and built himself a mansion thereon.
The map in the Starr Institute, made in 1797, shows him the
owner of this mansion and of the mill at Cedar Hill ; while that
at the river is put down to Mrs. Margaret Livingston, and the
Hendricks mill, in the interior of the town, to Chancellor Liv-
ingston. After 1800, the mill at the river and the mill at Cedar
Hill are both in the possession of General Armstrong, and they
both apparently continued so until 18 12, when our town record
says John C. Stevens is roadmaster " from General Armstrong's
gristmill door at the river easterly * * ."
Gen. Armstrong, we are told, declined all invitations to pub-
lic ofifice in the State of New York until 1801, when he was ten-
dered the ofifice of United States Senator by an unanimous vote
of both branches of the Legislature, and accepted it. ' He was
re-elected in 1803, and retained the office until the following
year, when he resigned it, and accepted the mission to France,
as successor to his brother-in-law. Chancellor Livingston. He
remained in this position seven years. When he returned from
France, he purchased the farm and built the mansion which are
now " Rokeby," on the banks of the Hudson, south of Barry-
town, in Red Hook. In 181 2 he was appointed Brigadier-Gen-
eral in the United States Army, and, in 181 3, secretary of War^
by President Madison.
He sold Rokeby to his son-in-law, William B. Astor, and
built the house in Red Hook Village in which his son. Colonel
Henry Beekman Armstrong, the last survivor of Margaret Beek-
man's grandchildren, is now residing. He died in this house on
the 1st of April, 1843, in the eighty-fifth year of his age. His
^6 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
remains are reposing in the Armstrong vault in our village cem-
etery, with those of his wife and his son John.
EDWARD LIVINGSTON.
Edward Livingston, the tenth child of Judge Robert R.
Livingston and Margaret Beekman, married twice: first, Mary
McEvers, in April, 1798; second, Louise Moreau de Lassy, the
young widow of a gentleman from Jamaica, in June, 1805, her
maiden name being D'Avezac. ' He had three children by the
first, and one by the second wife. Those by the first were :
Charles Edward, born in 1790; Julia Eliza Montgomery, born
in 1794; Lewis, born in 1798; all died young and unmarried.
The child by the second wife was Cora L. She married Thom-
as P. Barton, of Philadelphia, in April, 1833. They had no
children. Mary McEvers, the first wife, died in March, 1801 ;
Louise D'Avezac, the second, died in October, i860. Thomas
P. Barton died in April, 1869; Cora Livingston Barton died in
May, 1873 ; and thus passed away the family of Edward Living-
ston, the last child of Margaret Beekman.
Edward Livingston was elected to Congress from the city
of New York, in 1794, re-elected in i796-'98, and appointed At-
torney-General of the United States for the district of New
York in the same year, and filled both offices. He was Mayor
of New York in 1798. He moved to New Orleans, in Louisiana*
He was elected to Congress from New Orleans in 1822, and re-
elected twice thereafter. He was made Senator for the State of
Louisiana in 1829 ; Secretary of State for the United States in
May, 1831 ; resigned the office on the 29th of May, 1833, and
on the same day was appointed Minister to France. He accept-
ed the office, retained it until 1835, when he returned, arriving
in the city of New York on the twenty-third of June, 1835.
He retired to Montgomery place, in Red Hook, where he pro-
posed to spend the remnant of his life in the pursuits of the
farmer, and died, as before stated, on the twenty-third of May^
1836, leaving all his property to his wife.
On the 1st of October, 1836, Mrs. Louisa Livingston sold
all the lands in the village of Rhinebeck, which became her
property by the will of her husband, to William B. Piatt, John
T. Schryver, Freeborn Garrettson, Rutsen Suckley, John Arm-
CORNELIA REEKMAN. 7/
strong and Walter Cunningham, for nineteen thousand six
hundred dollars. These parties are known in the history of
our village as the " Improvement Company. ' Why, we have
not learned. They divided the land into shares, and assigned
to each his portion by deed. The design of the purchasers was
doubtless to lay out the land in village lots, and thus dispose
of it at a large advance on the cost.
CORNELIA BEEKMAN.
Cornelia Beekman and Gilbert Livingston had fourteen
children, as follows: James, Henry, Robert Gilbert. Margaret,
Johanna, Alida, Catherine, John, Philip, William, Samuel, Cor-
nelius, Gilbert, Gilbert. Of these children, we learn from Hel-
gate's genealogies, that John, Philip, William, Samuel, Cornelius
and the first Gilbert died unmarried.
James Livingston married Judith Newcoomb. They had
three children, as follows: Cornelia, Judith, Gilbert James. He
was sheriff of Dutchess County, and resided in Poughkeepsie.
Henry Livingston married Susan Conklin. They had
eleven children, as follows: Beekman, Robert, Henry, John H.,
the celebrated Reformed Dutch minister; Catherine, Johanna,
Susan, Alida, Cornelia, Helen, Gilbert. He was county clerk
under the English government, and also under that of the United
States, until his death, 1799, '" ^^^^ eighty-fifth year of his age.
He resided in Poughkeepsie.
Robert Gilbert Livingston married Catherine McPheaders.
They had five children, as follows : Gilbert R., Henry G., Helen,
Catherine, Robert G. He resided in New York.
Margaret Livingston married Peter Stuyvesant.
Johanna Livingston married Pierre Van Cortlandt.
Alida Livingston married, first, Jacob Rutsen ; second,
Henry Van Rensselaer. She resided in Rhinebeck in 1755.
Catherine Livingston married Thomas Thorn.
Gilbert Livingston married Joy Darrell.
Robert G. Livingston, son of Robert Gilbert and Catherine
M. Pheaders, and thus grandson of Gilbert Livingston and Cor-
nelia Beekman, married Margaret Hude, and settled in Rhine-
beck near the mills which were once called Robert G. Living-
ston's, and afterwards Hake's and Crook's mills, near Rock City.
78 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
He was roadmaster from those mills to the Rhinebeck Lutheran
Church in 1789. They had six children, as follows: Catherine,
married twice ; first, M. Brissac ; second, Claudius G. Masson-
neau, of Red Hook ; Helen, married Jeremiah Tronson, of New
York ; Cornelia, married John Crooke, of Poughkeepsie ; Marga-
ret, married Augustus C. Van Horn, of New York ; Robert G.,
married Marthe de Reimer, of Poughkeepsie; Henry G., mar-
ried Catherine Coopernail, of Milan, on December 26th, 1703.
Of the last named we know that he had no children ; that he
spent part of his life in Schoharie ; that he spent his last days
in a house near Rock City belonging to his brother-in-law, John
Coopernail, sustained by his bounty ; and that he died on Sep-
tember 29, 1868, in the eighty-fourth year of his age. His wife
died a year later, and they repose, side by side, in the old grave-
yard of the Rhinebeck Lutheran Church, which was a gift to
the church by his great-grandparents in 1729. He was a tall
man, of large stature, measuring fifty inches around the waist,
and having a striking countenance. We had not traced his
genealogy, but on seeing a picture of Dr. John H. Livingston
in an old Dutch Church hymn book, found the likeness so strik-
ing that We at once pronounced them of the same blood. He
was never awed by the dignity of a merely human position, or
the state or style of a human being, however exalted. He
would not have given the emperor more than half of the road,
and if he had met the empress on the street would have hailed
her with a gracious salutation, and commended her for her beau-
ty ; and if he had asked her for a kiss in return, it would have
been just like him. He was a temperate man, and constitution-
ally religious.
Jeremiah Tronson and Helen Livingston had a son,
Robert, who married a daughter of Isaac Davis, of Rhinebeck.
He is well remembered by our old p'eople as the keeper of a
grocery store in this village many years ago. Jeremiah Tron-
son, a well-known resident of this town, is his son.
Cornelia Beekman never resided on her Rhinebeck estate.
Except her daughter, Alida, the wife of Jacob- Rutsen, it is not
certain that any of her children ever resided here.
The book of the old German Reformed Church has this
gp:nealogy of cornklia beekman. 79
record, in German : '* Baptized on profession of their faith,
Robert Livingston's neger and negerin, January 2d, 1743."
On the following page we have this record of a baptism : Child,
Gysbert ; parents, Henry Livingston, Susan Conklin : sponsers,
Jacob Rutsen, Alida Livingston ; January 30th, 1743." This
record is doubtless in Henry Livingston's own handwriting,
and of a baptism by Rev. George Michael Weiss. It may be
inferred from this, that Robert G. Livingston, with his slaves,
was a resident of Rhinebeck at this date. But it is just as
likely that they were the slaves of Robert, of Clermont. And
Henry Livingston, county clerk, and probably a resident of
Poughkeepsie, may have been on a visit to his sister when he
had his son baptized.
We insert the following genealogy because the town of
Rhinebeck, and Cornelia Beekman are distinctly touched by it :
Robert Livingston, the first lord of the manor, had a son,
Philip, who married Catherine Van Brough ;
Philip Livingston and Catherine Van Brough had a son,
Robert, who married Mary Tong ;
Robert Livingston and Mary Tong had a son, Peter R.,
who married Margaret Livingston, a grand-daughter of Robert
Livingston, the nephew, and thus, aunt of Peter R. and Matu-
rin Livingston, both at one time residents of Rhinebeck ;
Peter R. Livingston and Margaret Livingston had a son,
Walter Tryon, who married twice — first, Eliza Platner ; sec-
ond, Elizabeth McKinstry ;
Walter Tryon Livingston and Eliza Platner had a son,
Peter R., who married Jane Thorn, a great-grand-daughter of
Cornelia Beekman ; and a daughter, Helen, who married Leon-
ard W. Ten Broeck ;
Peter R. Livingston and Jane Thorn had a son, Walter
T., who married Elizabeth Wager, of this town ; and Leonard
W. Ten Broeck and Helen Livingston had a son, Walter
Livingston Ten Broeck, who married Helen U. Shultz, also
of this town. We believe the title to the Scottish Livingston
lordship belongs to the line of Robert, the nephew, some of
whose blood has thus found its way into the veins of our Wal-
ter L. Ten Broeck, and our late Walter T. Livingston, but
8o HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
flows in a larger measure in those of some other branches of
the family.
CHAPTER XI.
THE HOFFMAN FAMILY.
There was a family of HofTmans in the north end of
the precinct of Rhinebeck who became prominent at an
early date in our history. Whether they obtained their
lands directly from Peter Schuyler, the patentee, or from
other parties who had thus obtained them, we have not
learned. We have seen a reference somewhere to Nicholas
Hoffman as the owner of lands in that locality as far back as
1725. In 1722, Peter Schuyler sold lands there to "Lawrence
Knickerbocker, Cornelius Knickerbocker, Evert Knickerbocker,
all of Dutchess County ; Anthony Bogardus, of Albany, and Jan-
itje, his wife ; and Jan Vosburg, of the said Dutchess County, and
Cornelia, his wife ; sons and daughters of Harme Jans Knicker
bocker, late of Dutchess County aforesaid, deceased." In 1766
John Vosburgh, and Cornelia, his wife ; Laurence Knickerbock-
er and Hans jury Loundert, all of Rhinebeck precinct, in
Dutchess County, of the one part, and Anthony Hoffman, of
Kingston, Ulster County, Zacharias Hoffman, of Rhinebeck, of
the other part, agree to divide a certain tract of land lying ad-
jacent to the south of the manor of Livingston, apparently be-
longing to them in common. Whether by this division, at this
time, or at an earlier date, and in an another manner, the Hoff-
mans became the owners of lands at the river, about Tivoli,
and about the old Red Church and the Hoffman mills, northeast
of Tivoli ; and they were freighters, store-keepers, and millers
before and after the Revolutionary War.
Holgate, in his genealogies, says these Hoffmans were de-
scendants of Martinus Hoffman, of Sweden, who settled at
Shongum, in Ulster County. His son, Nicolas, married Jannitje
Crispell, daughter of Antonie Crispell, a Huguenot, one of the
patentees of New Paltz, and thus transmitted some of the best
blood of France in the veins of his descendants. He says he
settled in Kingston. He was evidently the Nicholas Hoffman
who owned land in the precinct of Rhinebeck as early as 1725,
THE HOFFMAN FAMILY. 61
and was a freeholder here in 1740. He had no son Nicholas,
and his grandson of that name was not born at this date.
Nicholas Hoffman and Jannitje Crispell had five children,
as follows: Martinus, born in 1706; Anthony, born in 1711;
Zacharias, born in 171 3; Petrus, born 1727; Maria, born 1730.
There is here a space of fourteen years between Zacharias and
Petrus, which Holgate ought to have accounted for.
Martinus Hoffman married Tryntje Benson, daughter of
Robert Benson and Cornelia Roos, for a first wife, and the
widow, Alida Hansen, daughter of Philip Livingston, the
second lord of the manor, for a second ; and was thus brother-
in-law to Rev. Dr. John H. Livingston. By Tr>mtje Benson
he had nine children, as follows : Cornelia, born in Kingston,
August 13, 1734; Robert, born in Kingston, September 17,
1737; Anthony, born in Red Hook, August i, 1739; Maria,
born June 20, 1743 ; Martin, born in Red Hook, January 12,
1847, baptized in the Camp Church, July 3, 1747; Zacharias,
born in Red Hook, May 10, 1749; baptized in the Rhine-
beck German Reformed Church, at Pink's Corner, June 2,
1749; Jane, born February 14, 1752 ; Harmanus, born Janua-
ry 3, 1745; Nicholas, born 1756. He had one child by Alida
Hansen Livingston, Philip L., born December 28, 1767.
Philip Livingston Hoffman married Helen Kissam. They
had seven children, as follows : Catharine Ann, Alida, Helen
Hannah, Philip, Richard Kissam, Adrian Kissam. The latter
had several children, among them John T. Hoffman, ex-Gov-
ernor of New York.
Martinus Hoffman was a Justice of the Peace for Dutchess
County in 1750-51. In 1755, he owned ten slaves, the larg-
est number held by any one person in the precinct. He was
doubtless a man of large property and influence. His son,
Anthony, was Superviser of the town of Rhinebeck from 1781
to 1785. He was Colonel, and member of the first, third and
fourth Provincial Congresses.
Anthony, brother to Martinus, resided in Kingston. His
son, Nicholas, married Edy Sylvester, of New York, and resided
in Red Hook. The latter's son, Anthony, married, first. Miss
Pell ; 2d, Ann Cornelia, daughter of Isaac Stoutenburgh and Ann
82 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
Heermance, aunt to Rev. H. Heermance, of Rhinebeck. By his
first wife his children were: Jane, born March 15, 1808; Laura,
born November, 1809; Nicholas, born October, 181 1 ; Mary
Ann, born January, 18 14, married Andrew Pitcher. By the
second wife the children were : Edward, Cornelia, Charles,
Augustus, Elizabeth, Francis, Frederic, Anna, Catharine, How-
ard, Caroline. Cornelia, of this family, married John M. Keese,
and had two children, Charlotte Suydam and Anthony Hoffman
Keese.
Col. Martinus Hoffman's wife was Tryntje Benson. Egbert
Benson was a member of Congress from Red Hook from 1789
to 1793. We assume that he was a relative, if not a brother,
of Mrs. Martinus Hoffman. John S. Livingston bought land
of Egbert Benson in 171 5, and we assume they were the prem-
ises on which he resided, and on which Egbert Benson resided
when he went to Congress from Red Hook.
The ministers of the Reformed Church here made a record
of baptisms in Red Hook as early as 175 1. After 1787, when
the Church in Upper Red Hook was built, it was called the
" New Red Hook Church," and the one near Hoffman's Mills
was called the " Old Red Hook Church." It is clear, then, that
the vicinity of this mill was the point to which the name of
Red Hook was applied as early as 1751. In our old town
records, in 1789, " Mickle More" is roadmaster, "from Henry
King's to Col. Hoffman's." In 1790, it is " from Henry King's
to Red Hook Landing," and so again in 1791. In 1792, Henry
Lyle being Town Clerk, it is " from Henry King's to Reed's
Store," and it is to Read's store until 1799. when the road dis-
trict is as follows: " From the River road to James Wilson's,
to manor line, and from Zacharias Hoffman's to Red Hook
Landing road." It is never to " Read Hook." In 1774 William
Davies gave a receipt to Johannis Smith for " twenty skepples
wheat and four fowles for James Bogardus," and dated at " Red
Hook." Hoc/c is the Dutch for corner, and Red Hook simply
means Red Corner; and we have no doubt the corner occupied
by Hoffman's Mill had its buildings painted red, and that this
was the origin of Red Hook. In those days the farm building
went unpainted, and when the tloffmans painted they used red,
THE VAN BENTHUYSENS AND HEERMANCES. 83
as most everybody else did. The Hoffmans were an important
people, and we have no doubt their corner was, in its day, an
important one to the neighborhood. The name of Red Hook
was applied to the Upper several years before it reached the
Lower village of Red Hook. But we have seen no evidence
that it reached the Upper village in advance of the church.
There were Palatine Hoffmans, and there were many peo-
ple of the name in Red Hook, not related to those concerned
in this history.
CHAPTER XH.
THE VAN BENTHUYSENS AND HEERMANCES.
Barent Van Benthuysen, who bought one-fourth of the
present town of Red Hook from Peter Schuyler, in 1725, was
a native of Albany. He married in Kingston, April 17, 1699,
Altje, daughter of Jan Elting, and widow of Aart Gerritse,
eldest son of Gerrit Aartsen. He was thus related by marriage
to two of the patentees of the tract of land in this town called
Kipsbergen in the beginning of our history. He became a
widower, and married for a second wife Jannetje, daughter of
Gerrit Aartsen, and thus sister to the wives of Hendricus and
Andries Heermance, on the 2 1st of April, 1701. As we have
learned, the children of Gerrit Aartsen took Van Wagenen for
a family name. And we learn from the Kingston Church
records that Barent Van Benthuysen and Jannetje Van Wag-
enen had children baptized as follows: Gerrit, January 25,
1702; Jan, February 6, 1704; Catryntje, September 28, 1707;
Anna, May 7, 1710; Peter, February 24, 1712; Jacob, October
3, 1714; Abraham, August 24, 1718.
Barent Staats, another of the partners to the purchase of
the Schuyler patent in 1725, disposed of most, if not all, of his
lands to other parties, some of it passing into the possession of
the Van Benthuysens and Heermances, who seem to have
moved out of Kingston to Red Hook together, at an early
date, and simultaneously with the Hoffmans and Elmendorfs.
Hendricus Heermance, whose wife was Annatjen Van Wag-
enen, settled in Rhinebeck. and had six children ; Andries
Heermance, who married Neeltje Van Wagenen, remained in
84 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
Kingston later, and had fourteen children. It is probable that
nearly, if not quite all their children settled on the lands of
Barent Van Benthuysen and Barent Staats, in the north part of
the precinct of Rhinebeck.
Jacob Heermance, born in Kingston, and probably son of
Andries Heermance and Neeltje Van Wagenen, married Cath-
erine Vosburgh, probably daughter of Jan Vosburgh and Cor-
nelia Knickerbocker, on the 30th of December, 1747. He lived
in and probably built the stone house occupied in our recollec-
tion by Lewis Beckwith, west of Henry Benner's, on the road
from Henry Cotting's (near the post road), to the river, in
1762. They had four sons and four daughters, as follows:
Jacob, John, Andrew, Martin, Cornelia, Anna, Dorothea, and
Eleanor.
Martin Heermance married the daughter of Dr. Hans
Kiersted, who owned the farm now the property of Eugene
Wells, in this village. Martin Heermance succeeded his father-
in-law in the possession of this property, ,and built the present
spacious and substantial brick mansion in 1793.
Eleanor Heermance married Peter Contine. They lived
in the village of Upper Red Hook from 1785 to 1791, the road
east of the village during the time being from Warachkameek
to Peter Contine's. We assume that his pursuit was that of a
merchant, for we find him, after this date, keeping a store at
what is now Barrytown Landing, and in 1798 in the same pur-
suit at the Hoffman's, or Red Hook Landing.
Jacob J. Heermance was found by the road district in 1792-
and 1793, where it found Peter Contine, and he was probably
his successor in business. He was his brother-in-law.
Dorothea Heermance married Henry DeWitt, and in 1794-
5-6-7 he was found by the road district from Warrachkameek
where it had found his brothers-in-law, Peter Contine and
Jacob J. Heermance, and probably in the same employment.
Anna Heermance married Isaac Stoutenburgh, Jr., and
they were found at the same corner in 1798.
Cornelia Heermance married David Van Ness. From 1790
to 1798 we find him in the house which became Stephen
Holmes' Inn, in 1798, Ebenezer Punderson's house in 1802, and
THE KITTLE, LYLE AND PUNDERSON HOUSES. 85
the residence of Wilhelmus Benner, at Punderson's death,
about 1836.
What were known to us as the Kittle, the Lyle, and the
Punderson houses in 1838 were large and stately edifices, with
gambrel roofs, and two stories high. They were the most
important houses, and doubtless occupied by the most import-
ant personages in the vicinity in their day. We assume that
the Punderson house w.as built by David Van Ness, and it is a
well authenticated tradition that the Lyle and Kittle houses
were built by one person. A daughter of Harry Lyle says they
were both built by the same person, and by a man whose name
was Heermance. She says when he had completed the Lyle
house, he found the ceilings too low to suit his taste, disposed
of it for this reason, and at once built the Kittle house, of
brick, and with a higher ceiling. The builder, if a Heermance,
was probably either John, Jacob, or Andrew, of the sons of
Jacob Heermance and Catherina Vosburgh.
Jacob Thomas was Lieutenant in the company of soldiers
enlisted by Henry B. Livingston as Captain in 1775. He was
roadmaster on the King's highway from the manor line to the
Sawkill, in 1764. He was found in the village of Upper Red
Hook, by the Warachkameek road district from 1767 to 1784,
a period of seventeen years. His wife was Margaret Teator,
and she was sister to the wife of John Fulton, who lived on
Turkey Hill, a short distance east of Warachkameek. There is
a tradition among the Teators that he built the Kittle house,
that he kept a tavern during the Revolutionary War, and sold
a great deal of liquor for a great deal of money. He may have
been the builder of the two houses with the proceeds of his
traffic, and built the second for the reason stated by Mrs. Smith,
the daughter of Harry Lyle. It is stated, on the authority of
the late Judge Rowley, that he contracted with the father of
the late Henry Staats for the brick, at a price which fell greatly
below their market value, before the house was completed, and
that Staats importuned him in vain, and with liberal offers, for
a release from his engagement.
The Lyle House, with the adjacent lands, are now the
property of Edward Mooney, the artist, and the Kettle House,
86 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
which was the residence of Captain Isaac Stoutenburgh in 1798,
is now the stately and substantial residence of Dr. John Losee,
In 1768 Janetia Bratt was the owner of a mill in the Cove
at the mouth of the White Clay Creek, Thomas Louis be-
ing road-master therefrom to the post road. In 1769 the road
is from John Van Ness' mill, and it continues thus until 1779,
when it is from Widow Van Ness' mill. From this it appears
that John Van Ness married Janetia Bratt, and thus became
the owner of the mill. The road from the river to the post
road, from 1762 to 1778, was from Hoffman's to John Van
Ness', and from 1779 ^^ 1787 from Colonel Hoffman's to Wid-
ow Van Ness'. In 1789 it is from Widow Van Ness' to Henry
King's, and from Henry King's to Red Hook landing, and it is
from Henry King's to Widow V^an Ness' until 1796. It thus
appears that the residence of John Van Ness and his widow,
for all these years, was the house near the post road, east of
Henry Benner's old place, and which was the residence of Hen-
ry Cotting before he purchased the Nicholas Moore Farm, near
the village of Upper Red Hook, and which house is not now in
existence.
There was a store at the corner north of the residence of
Thomas Elmendorf, kept by a family of Heermances, we think
from 1802 to 181 2, and who were the owners of the property as
far back certainly as 1790.
Our old records, commencing in 1748, apply the name of
Red Hook nowhere except to the Tivoli landing, and to that
for the first time in 1789.
CHAPTER XIII.
OUR PALATINE SETTLERS.
There were three immigrations of Palatines to our State in
the first quarter of the eighteenth century. The first came in
1709, under Joshua Knockerthal, their minister, and consisted
of "fifty-one poor Lutherans from the Lower Palatinate in
Germany" — viz. : ten men, ten women and twenty-one children.
They settled at Quasek creek, now called Chamber's creek, in
Orange County. The second came with Governor Robert
Hunter in i7j^o, and the third in 1722 under Governor Burnet.
OUR PALATINE SETTLERS. 87
It concerns our present purpose to deal with those only who
came here with Governor Hunter.
The first installment of these people came in the ship,
Lyon, which arrived in the port of New York in June, 17 10.
Having contagious diseases among them, they were detained
on Governor's Island. On the 24th of July, 17 10, Governor
Hunter wrote to the Board of Trade, in England, that ''all the
Palatine ships, separated by the weather, are arrived safe ex-
cept the Herbert Frigat, where our tents and arms are. She
was cast away on the east end of Long Island, on the 7th
of July; the men are safe, but our goods much damaged. We
still want the Bercly Castle, which we left at Portsmouth. The
poor people have been mighty sickly, but recover apace. We
have lost above four hundred and seventy of our number. Soon
after our arrival, I sent the surveyor with some skilled men to
survey the land on the Mohaks river, particularly the Skohare.
* * * These lands, however, I believe will be noways fit
for the design in hand, being very good lands which here bears
no pines, and lyes very remote. I shall, however, be able to
carry it on elsewhere, for there is no want of pines; but the pine
land being good for nothing, the dfiificulty will be in finding
such a situation as will afford good land for their settlement
near the pine lands. I am in terms with some who have lands
on the Hudson River fit for that purpose, which I intend to
view next week with Dr. Bridges, who is now with me, and
gives me good encouragement."
On the 3d of October, 1710, he wrote to the same parties:
" I have been obliged to purchase a tract of land on Hudson's
River from Mr. Leviston, consisting of 6,000 acres, for ^400 of
this country money, that is £266 English, for the planting of
the greatest division of the Palatines. It has these advantages,
that, besides the goodness of the soil, it is adjacent to the pines,
which by the conveyance we are entitled to, and a place where
ships of fifteen feet water may go without difificulty. Over
against it, but a little further, I have found a small tract of
about a mile in length along the river, which has, by some
chance, not been granted, though pretended to have been pur-
chased of the Indians by some, where I have planted the re-
88 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
mainder. They are not all transported as yet, but I am making
all possible dispatch that I may prevent the Winter. This tract
also lies near the pines."
The object in settling these people on good land near the
pines, with their families, was to enable them to make tar and
pitch for the English Navy from the pines, and support them-
selves by cultivating the land on which their tents were
pitched.
On the 14th of November, 17 10, Governor Hunter again
addressed the Board of Trade as follows : " I have now settled
the Palatines on good lands on both sides of the Hudson River,
about one hundred miles up, adjacent to the pines. I have
planted them in five villages, three on the east side of the
river, upon the 6,000 acres I have purchased of Mr. Levingston,
about two miles from Rowlof-Jansen's Kill, the other two on
the west side, near Sawyer's Creek. * * * yj^g
land on the west side belongs to the Queen, and each family
hath a sufficient lot of good arable land, and ships of fifteen
foot draught of water can sail up as far as the plantations. In
the Spring I shall set them to work preparing the trees accord-
ing to Mr. Bridges' directions."
The settlement of these people on this side, of the river
was known as East Camp, and that on the other as West Camp.
Robert Livingston, besides selling Governor Hunter the lands
on which they were settled on this side, entered into a contract
with him to subsist them on both sides until they could sup-
port themselves.
In reference to these contracts by the Governor, Lord
Clarenden wrote to Lord Dartsmouth on the 8th of March,
171 1 : "I think it unhappy that Colonel Hunter, at his first
arrival, in his government fell into. so ill hands, for this Levings-
ton has been known many years in that Province for a very ill
man. He has a mill and a bre\\'-house upon his land, and if he
can get the victualling of these Palatines, who are so conve-
niently posted for his purpose, he will make a very good addi-
tion to his estate, and I am persuaded the hopes he has of such
a subsistence to be allowed by her Majesty were the chief if
not the only inducements that prevailed with him to propose
THE GERMAN EMIGRANTS. 89
to Colonel Hunter to settle them upon his land, which is
not the best place for pine trees. * * * jyjy Lord,
upon the whole matter, I am of opinion that if the subsistence
proposed be allowed, the consequence will be that Levingston,
and some others, will get estates, the Palatines will not be the
richer."
Mrs. Lamb, in her History of New York, says of our Pala-
tine settlers : " These earlier German emigrants were mostly
mere hewers of wood and drawers of water, differing materially
from the class of Germans who have since come among us, and
bearing about the same relation to the English and Dutch and
French settlers of their time as the Chinese of to-day to the
American population of the Pacific coast." This opinion is the
opposite of that expressed by Macauley in his History of En-
gland. He says of these same people: " With French Protest-,
ants who had been driven into exile by the edicts of Louis,,
were now mingled German Protestants, who had been driven
into exile by his arms. Vienna, Berlin, Basle, Hamburg, Ams-
terdam, London swarmed with honest, laborious men, who had
once been thriving burghers of Heidelburg or Mannheim, or
who had cultivated vineyards on the banks of the Necker and
the Rhine. A statesman might well think that it would be at
once generous and polite to invite to the English shores, and to
incorporate with the English people, emigrants so unfortunate
and so respectable. Their ingenuity and their diligence could
not fail to enrieh any land which should afford them an asylum ;
nor could it be doubted that they would manfully defend the
country of their adoption against him whose cruelty had driven
them from the country of their birth."
While the bill to naturalize these people in England was
under debate in the British Parllaoient, Sir John Knight, mem-
ber for Bristol, said of the Dutchmen whom Mrs. Lamb distin-
guishes by her preference : " The bill was evidently meant for
the benefit, not of French Protestants and German Protestants,
but of Dutchmen, who would be Protestants, Papists or Pagans
for a guilder a head, and who would no doubt be as ready to
sign the declaration against transubstantiation in England as to
trample on the cross in Japan. They would come over in mul-
go HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
titudes. They would swarm in every public ofifice. They
would collect the customs and gauge the beer barrels. * *
For Hans, after filling the pockets of his huge trunk hose with
our money by assuming the character of a native, would, as soon
as a press gang appeared lay claim to the privileges of an
alien."
It is perfectly understood by those who have given the
matter a thought, that the English, the French and the Hol-
landers, with whom Mrs. Lamb attempts to disparage our early
German settlers, came here to make money in commerce and
trade, while the latter were here to maintain the freedom and
purity of their consciences. They had attained that moral and
intellectual elevation in which they knew that their masters and
rulers were tyrants — men who had been debased by luxury, and
lost the sense of human responsibility by the long exercise of
usurped or hereditary power — and that it had become their duty
to God, to themselves, and to their fellowmen to resist them,
and, failing of success, to escape the yoke by flight into God's
wilderness, and, if need be, beyond the seas. They had thus
developed within them a power of will and purpose to which
unjust governments, and the world of conceit, cunning and
venality must, sooner or later, succomb. While they were
hewing wood and drawing water, and subduing the earth, in
fulfillment of God's requirements, cunning, avaricious and dom-
ineering men were absorbing their lands, limiting their oppor-
tunities, crippling their skill, appropriating the profits of their
toil, and hoping to secure in their bondage the source of a
princely and perpetual income. But they had within them the
elements of a perpetual growth, and they soon "swelled beyond
the measure of their chains," and they are now the owners of
the soil they have conquered, and the masters of their own per-
sons. Whole counties and townships of land were acquired by
the patentees for nothing save a trifling quit rent at the end of
seven or ten years. And when the exiled Palatine took fifty of
their acres in the wilderness, and agreed to fence them, and
build houses and barns upon them, fell the trees and dig out
the stumps, and pay an annual rent of a schepel of wheat to
the acre during his and his wife's lives, their children to lose
THE MANUFACTURE OF TAR AND PITCH, 9 1
the fruit of their toil thereafter, it was with the hope of winning
a heavenly reward for earthly sacrifices. But God has put a
limit to the profit which the fortunate and strong man may
make out of the weak and unfortunate.
Governor Hunter's plan of setting the Palatines to making
tar and pitch, and raising hemp for the British Navy, in order
to indemnify the Government for the expense of sending them
over here, and maintaining them until they could be settled and
set to work, proved a failure, not because the men proved in-
tractable, but because the scheme was, in its nature and circum-
stances, wholly impracticable. The Palatines were greatly dis-
tressed, and complained, and the Government received very
small return in tar, pitch and hemp for its outlay. They blamed
Governor Hunter, and he blamed them, and they made a mu-
tual defence before the English Board of Trade, in 1720. Their
defence is on record in the third volume of the Documentary
History of New York, p. 423
Now, whatever may have been the other sides of these
questions, there was evidently a purpose, favored by Governor
Hunter, that the land of Schoharie, which they claimed, and
whither they had gone, should not be owned by these people,
but that it should be owned by some non-resident favorites,
perhaps for a personal consideration, to whom they should for-
ever remain mere " hewers of wood and drawers of water." The
fact that they saw and resisted the doom that was preparing
for them, proves that they had attained a development of mind
and soul beyond the reach of the measure which Mrs. Lamb
was able to apply them.
92 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
CHAPTER XIV.
GERMAN REFORMED CHURCH.
The first .church in Rhinebeck, and probably in Dutchess
County, was the " High Dutch Reformed Protestant Church,"
which, until the year 1800, stood near the old cemetery, on the
post-road, three miles north of the present village of Rhinebeck,
at what is now known as " Pink's Corner." It came into the
town with the German Palatines, and probably as early as 171 5.
There were among these people both Lutherans and Calvinists,
and they built the first church together, and remained joint
owners until 1729, when "contentions arising between them,
they thought best for both parties to separate, and to have each
a church to themselves," and the Lutherans sold out to the
"Reformed Protestants" on the loth day of December, 1729,
receiving for their interest in the church and four acres of
ground, " twenty-five pounds current money of New York."
The money was paid by Hendrick Shever, Joseph Rykart,
Barent Siperly, and Karell Neher, for the Lutherans, and re-
ceived by France Kelder, Coenradt Bearinger, Wendell Polver
and Jacob Wolleben for the Reformers. In a bond given by
the Lutherans to the Reformers, they say, " in a deed from
Henry Beekman, son of Col. Henry Beekman, deceased ; John
Rutsen and Catherine, his wife, daughter of Col. Henry Beek-
man ; and Gilbert Livingston and Cornelia, his wife, another
daughter of Col. Henry Beekman, to Barent Siperly, Jr., for a
farm at Rhynbeek, on the fifth day of March, 1721, containing
fifty-six acres of land, was reserved four acres of land whereon
the Church of Rhynbeek then stood, for the use of a church and
church-yard, and so to remain forever for that use ; " and, also,
that " Gilbert Livingston and his wife, with the consent of the
said Barent Siperly, Jr., did, on the first day of August, 1724,
lease the said farm unto Hendrick Beam, with the said reserva-
tion of the said four acres for the church."
We learn from this that four acres had been assigned for
the church, and the church built thereon before 1721 ; that the
reservation was again made in 1724, when the land changed
GERMAN REFORMED CHURCH. 93
owners; and that joint ownership continued to 1729, when the
German Reformers became sole proprietors. On the fourth of
December, 1747, " Catherine Pawhng, of Rinebeek Precinct, in
Dutchess County, Province of New York, widow," gave to
Nicolas Stickell, Jacob Sickener, Philip More, Hendrick Der-
ringer. Jacob Drum, and Jacob Derringer, " being the present
Elders and Deacons of the High Dutch Reformed Protestant
Church of Rinebeek," a deed for this church and lands, in
which she again recites the leases to Siperly and Deam, and
says : " Whereas, by the above recited leases there is no pro-
vision made or liberty given to the inhabitants of Rinebeek
aforesaid to lett, ride or make use of any wood on the com-
mons of Rinebeek aforesaid ; and whereas, the farm above men-
rioned is lying in lott number two (in Rinebeek patent) belong-
ing unto the said Catharine Pawling, who has caused the said
four acres for the use of the Church aforesaid to be surveyed,
and is beginning on the west side of the King's road, next to
and bounding on the land of Zacharias Smith, by a stone set
in the ground ; from thence south twenty-six degrees east,
twelve chains and forty-four links to a stone set in the ground ;
then north fifty degrees east, four chains and nine links ; then
north, twenty-two degrees west, three chains fifty-nine links ;
then north, thirty-four degrees west, seven chains eighty-eight
links; and then north, sixty-eight degrees west, three chains
and twenty links, to the place of beginning, containing four
acres, the breadth of the road being first deducted." The four
acres thus described she deeded to the elders and deacons
named, with the privilege " to cutt, ride and carry away all sorts
of wood and stone for the use of said ground, and for fire-wood
for the minister and the church, on the waste ground or com-
mons, or unimproved lands of the said Catharine Pawling, her
heirs and assigns, for the only proper use and benefit and be-
hoof of the inhabitants residing in Rinebeek professing and
practising the Protestant religion (according to the rules and
method as is agreed and concluded by the Synod National held
at Dortreght in the year 1618 and 1619), as it is now used to
exercise their worship in said church, and to bury their dead
in the cemetery or burying-place forever; and also for the use
94 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
of a minister, when one shall be called there, as aforesaid, and
that the same ground and premises and privileges shall be con-
verted to no other use or uses whatever," signed by Catharine
Pawling, December 24, 1747, in presence of Alida Rutsen and
Henry Livingston. When the church was discontinued on these
premises, in 1800, the land reverted to the heirs of Catharine
Pawling, or to the sole use of the cemetery. It is now, with
the exception of about one-fourth of an acre, appropriated for
farming purposes, and cattle are herded among the tombstones.
By what right this is done we have not learned, except it is by
the right of possession.
The records of this church while in union with the Luther-
ans, if any were kept, are lost. Johannes Spaller, a Lutheran,
was minister at the " Kamps and Rinback," in 1723, and doubt-
less ministered to the Lutherans in the Union Church at this
date. We have no positive knowledge of the minister who
served the German Reformed people during the union. John
Frederick Hager came to the Camps with the German people
in 1 710. On the 8th of October, 1715, he, with John Cast and
Godfrey de Wolven, on behalf of themselves and upwards of
sixty families of the Palatines in Dutchess County, petitioned
Governor Hunter for license to build a church in Kingsbury.
Corwin, in his Manual, classes him with the Reformed minis-
ters. This being so, he probably served both the Kingsbury
and Rhinebeck people. And the Rhinebeck may have been
the Kingsbury church.
After the separation, in 1730, a book of records was opened
in the Reformed Church, which is now in our possession. The
first baptisms were recorded on the 5th of April, 1730, and the
first in the list is Johannes, the son of Zacharias Schmidt. The
writer of this history is the grandson of this Johannes Schmidt.
The title page to the book, in German, is in the hand-writing of
George Michal Weiss, and is as follows, in English : "General
Church Book of the Reformed Congregation in Reyn Beek,
Organized and Established by G. M. Weiss, Preacher for the
time being for the Two Low Dutch Congregations at Kats Kill
and Kocks Hocky. Ao. Christi, 1734, May 23d."
From this period on to 1742, there were one hundred and
GERMAN REFORMED CHURCH. 95
forty baptisms by George Michael Weiss and George Wilhelm
Mancius, a large majority by the latter. On the 27th of June,
1742, the record is again in the unmistakable hand of Dominie
Weiss, and this is the beginning of a pastorate of four years in
the German church at Rhinebeck, and the Dutch church on the
Flats, the churches being a joint charge during this period. His
record in the German church terminated on the 22d, and in the
Dutch, on the 29th of June, 1746. He baptized two hundred
and thirty-three children in the former, and one hundred and
twenty in the latter.
Casper Ludwig Schnorr, of the Camp Reformed Church,
installed the officers of the Rhinebeck church on the 2d of May,
1747, and presided at the reception of members therein on the
26th of April. The baptisms from 1746 to 1748 are in his hand.
He evidently served both churches during this period, and thus
established a union which endured for a century.
At the close of Schnorr's labors, Mancius resumed the
charge of the church, and did all its work until February 15,
1755. He recorded one hundred and seventeen baptisms in
this period, and' added eight)- members to the church.
Johan Casper Rubel came into the pastorate of the Camp
and Rhinebeck churches in 1755. He recorded his first baptism
in Rhinebeck on the 18th of May, 1755, and his last on the
30th of September, 1759. He baptized two hundred and twenty
children, and added eighty members to the church. His records
are those of an easy and rapid writer, and the most orderly, in
a well-kept book. He always wrote " Rein Beek " for the name
of the precinct.
At the close of Rubel's pastorate, Mancius again came to
the help of the church ; and, with the exception of three bap-
tisms in the hand of Johannes Casparus Fryenmoet, of Livings-
ton's Manor, on the 25th of October, 1761, he did all the work
of the church to May 31st, 1762.
On the 27th of September, 1764, there was a single bap-
tism recorded by Rubel ; and on the 25th and 26th of October
there are six baptisms and four additions to the church record-
ed in the hand of Dominie Fryenmoet. On the 25th of June,
1763, Rubel recorded thirteen baptisms and four additions to
96 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
the church. And this is the last we find of his hand in the
records of the church. Corwin says he was on Long Island
from 1759 to 1783, a violent Tory, calling the American soldiers
" Satan's soldiers"; was deposed in 1784, and died in 1797.
Gerhard Daniel Cock came to America, on invitation of
the Camp church, in November, 1763, and at once took charge
of both churches. He recorded his first baptism in the Rhine-
beck church on the iith of December, 1763, and his last on
the 24th of July, 1791. In this pastorate of twenty-eight years,
his record is unbroken,— kept in a legible hand, and in a clear and
orderly manner. He baptized one thousand eight hundred and
nineteen children, seven hundred of them between the years
1775 and 1785, the period which embraced the seven years of
the Revolutionary War. In his list of baptisms there were ten
pairs of twins, and eight children born out of wedlock. He died
at the Camp, now Germantown, in Columbia County, and was
buried under the pulpit of the church there. The balance of
salary due him was paid to his widow, who gave the receipt
which follows:
" Received German Kamp, October 9th, 1791', from Johannes
Schmid, Gered Halsabel, Elders and Drostis of the Reverend
Gurch of Rinebeck, the sum of Thirty seven pound Eith shil-
lings Tenn Pens in full upon all Demands for Dominie Gered
Daniel Koock Sellere.
I say Received By Me,
Hendrick Benner. Christina Cok."
At the clo.-,e of Cock's pastorate, between July 24, 1791,
and June 15, 1794, there are twenty-four baptisms in an un-
known hand.
Johan Daniel Schefer came into the pastorate in 1794, and
kept an orderly record in German. He recorded his first bap-
tism on the 26th of August, 1794, and his last on the 9th of
October, 1799. He baptised two hundred and nineteen chil-
dren, of whom the following were twins :
Johannes and Jacob, children of Jacob Berringer and Elis-
abath Reinhard, his wife.
Elisabeth Martha, and Catharine Ann, children of Ezecheal
Valentine and his wife, Catherine.
(lERMAN RKFORMED CHURCH. 97
We find Henry, son of Thomas DeLamater and Christina Pul.
ver, his wife, among Schefer's baptisms, on July 2, 1798. And
we may here remark, that while the German Reformed Church
remained at Rhinebeckj it seemed a matter of indifference to
Van Ettens, Van VVagenens, Van Keurens, Van Vradenburgs,
Van Deusens, Van Hovenburgs, DuBoises, DeLamaters, De-
Witts, Ten Broecks, and the Kips, whether their children were
baptized in the Dutch or German church.
Between July 8, 1800, and September 26, 1802, there are
nine baptisms in an unknown hand ; and we think in this
period the new edifice was built, four miles further north, in
what is now Red Hook, on land donated by General
Armstrong, and the church moved to it. But it should be
borne in mind that it did not cease to be the Rhinebeck German
Reformed Church, by this change of location. The precinct of
Rhinebeck, organized in 1734, extended to the Columbia
County line until 1812, when Red Hook received a separate
organization.
Valentine Rudiger Fox came into the pastorate in 1802,
and doubtless commenced it in the new church. He record-
ed his first baptism in a new book, on the 2oth of October,
1802, and his last, on the 27th of July, 1823.*
In this pastorate of twenty-one years, he baptized seven
hundred and twenty-five children, of whom the following were
twins :
Elisa Caroline and Lena Lavinia, children of Abraham
Duft and his wife, Cornelia.
John Rudy succeeded Dominie Fox, coming into the pas-
torate in 1823. His first baptism was recorded on the 2d of
October, 1823, and his last on the i8th of October, 1835. In
this pastorate of thirteen years he baptized two hundred and
forty-eight children, of whom the following were twins : Sally
Margaret and Christina, children of Henry Allendorf and his
wife, Rebecca.
* A gentleman who resided in Red Hook when Dominie Fox was the pastor there,
says he was a penurious man, and at the end of his ministry there returned to Ger-
many with considerable money ; that his charge for baptizing a child was two shill-
ings ; and that on one occasion, having been sent for to baptize a child "sick unto
death," he arrived too late, but baptized the dead child, nevertheless, and took the
two shillings.
98 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
Up to the pastorate of John Rudy the services of this
church were all in German. Rudy preached in both the Ger-
man and English languages, on alternate Sundays.
Cornelius Gates succeeded Rudy in the pastorate of the
Red Hook church, the Camp church having passed under the
care of the classis of Poughkeepsie on the 25th of April,
1837, during the pastorate of Rev. Jacob William Hangen,
who served thenceforth in connection with the Upper Red
Hook Dutch Reformed Church. This church having thus taken
the Camp, the Lutherans in a short time thereafter took the
Red Hook charge ; and this was the end of the German Re-
formed Church in Dutchess Connty. All there is left of it in
Rhinebeck, where it had its birth, and passed the most pros-
perous period of its existence, is the old grave-yard, now a
cow-yard, at Pink's Corner, within the limits of the old Pal-
atine village of Rein Beek. Stranded between the Dutch
Church on the Flats and that erected in the village of Upper
Red Hook, in 1785, it fell a very easy prey to the Lutherans,
with whom its people had freely inter-married, and toward
whom they naturally gravitated. P'rom first to last, its minis-
ters resided at the Camp, now the Germantown church.
CHAPTER XV.
THE RHINEBECK LUTHERAN CHURCH.
This church came into being simultaneously with the Ger-
man church at Pink's Corner. If it kept any records while in
union with the latter, before 1729, they are not now. in existence.
It sold out its interest in the church at Pink's Corner on the
lOth of December, 1729. On the 4th of November preceding,
it had applied to Gilbert Livingston for a lot for a church and
cemeter}^ and received the response which follows :
" Memorandum. — This 4th day of November, 1729, have
Francis Near and Michael Bonestell asked of me, in behalf of
the Lutheran congregation in Rhinebeck, Dutchess County, a
piece of ground for the purpose of building a church and mak-
ing a bur)'ing-place for the said congregation, which ground, so
said, lies b\' Parent Sipperly's. For the encouragement of so
THE LUTHERAN CHURCH. 99
good a work, I promise in this the same ground in my lot lying,
and at a convenient time to measure off to them and to give a
transfer for the Lutheran congregation dwelling on land of the
late Col. Henry Beekman. In witness whereof I have under-
signed this, date as above, at Kingston, Ulster County.
" Gilbert Livingston."
"The above promissory note was translated from the origi-
nal Low Dutch by me, the undersigned, at Clermont, Columbia
Co., N. v., this 2d day of May, 1857.
" AucujsTUS Wackerhagen."
The fruit of this promise was the present church lot and
cemetery, containing five acres, three roods and eighteen
perches. We do not find a deed for it among the church pa-
pers, but possession was doubtless at once obtained. There are
tombstones in the graveyard dating back to 1733. The follow-
ing letter is also found among the archives of the church :
" New York, ye 12 Feby., 1759.
" Gentlemen :
" I reed, yours of ye 5th inst. concerning that piece of
ground I gave for a parsonage. I find your inclinations are to
appropriate it for ye use of a schoolmaster, which is also a
charitable use. Therefore I freely grant your request, and wish
you a great deal of success in your undertakings. I am, with
respects, Gen'l, Your Very Obt. Servt.,
" Robert G. Livingston,
" Messrs. Franz Neher, Adam Schefer, David Reichert."
The farm of twenty-nine and one half acres, sold to Hans.
Adam Frederick by the Beekman heirs, on the 20th of October,
1718, was sold by Frederick to Barent Sipperly, on the 1st of
April, 1726, for fifteen pounds, New York money. On the ist
day of May, 1768, Michael Sipperly, the son of Barent, sold this
land to Henry Tator, Loedewick Elseffer, and Philip Bonesteel,
trustees of the Rhinebeck Lutheran Church, forever, for two
hundred pounds. New York money.
On the 1st day of May, 1768, Robert G. LivingsJ:on, of
New York, gave the same parties a life lease for two pieces of
L.cf C. •
ICX) RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY. *
ground, both pieces to contain seventeen acres, subject to a
rent of six bushels of wheat a year, and to continue during
the term of the lives of George Tator, Jr., David Elshever and
Frederick Sipperly, the son of George Sipperly.
On the 1st day of June, 1798, John Crooke deeded to Pe-
ter Traver, Jost Neher, Frederick Pister, John Seaman, David
Lown, Jr., and George Elsheffer, trustees, and their successors,
forever, two acres of land for fifty dollars, subject to an annual
rent of three pecks of wheat.
On the 8th day of December, 1807, Robert G. Livingston,
of Clinton, and his wife, Martha, sold to Nicholas Bonesteel,
Zacharias Traver, Johannes Simmon, Zacharias Feller, Andries
Teal, and John F. Feller, of the town of Rhinebeck, trustees o^
St. Peter's Church, for the sum of fifty dollars, three acres and
three roods of land for a parsonage lot.
We found also a map of the church lot, for five acres, three
roods, eighteen perches, with a map of seven acres, two roods,
five perches, on the east side of the road, for a parsonage lot.
These maps are without date, and were probably made in 1760'
A lease, dated May i, 1797, given by the trustees of the
church, to Charles Reinold, says he is to have all the lands ly-
ing on the east side of the post road, belonging to the church'
and the house, until the ist day of May next, for which he
must pay the rent to the landlord, keep the fende in good re-
pair, and transact the business of a clerk of said church. But
he is not to cut or carry away any timber or wood from said
land, except to make or repair the fence ; and when he shall
have brought a receipt from the landlord for the rent, he shall
have the liberty to cut and carry away such grains as he sows,
"providing it be no more than one-third part of the land ;" that
is, providing not more than one third part of the land has been
put in grain. The church now owns no lands on the east side
of the road. Why not, we find no documents to tell us. They
were either sold or held under leases which expired, and were
not renewed.
On the 8th of January, 1808, the church lands, indepen-
dently of the church lot, were the property of Robert G. Liv-
ingston and his wife, Martha, and they disposed of them in a
THE LUTHERAN CHURCH. lOl
conveyance bearing this date, to Samuel Hake, and are de-
scribed as being now in the possession of the church, and con-
taining thirty-two acres. The church held these lands under a
perpetual lease, and paid an annual rent of ten bushels and
twenty-eight quarts of wheat. On the ist day of May, 1857,
this rent was due to James De Peyster, Frederick De Peyster
and Robert G. L. De Peyster, heirs and devasees of Samuel
Hake ; and they released the land from this incumbrance at
this date, in a deed of absolute ownership to Henry Cotting,
Michael Traver, John A. Traver, Stephen Traver, Jacob Teal,
Philip Sipperly, John H. Rikert, Henry A. Cramer, and Lewis
D. Elseffer, trustees of the church, for two hundred and seventy-
five dollars.
The first church edifice was undoubtedly built in 1730; for
we find in the archives of the church the following statement
and receipts: "Anno, 1730, cost of glass for the Lutheran
church, four pounds twelve shillings, Received from Carl Nier
two pounds." This is in the handwriting of Petrus Bogardus.
" Kingston, June 14,1731, Received from Carl Nier three pounds
eight shillings in part payment for plank for the church in
Dutchess county. For Juryan Tappen, G. Hends. Slecht," " Sep-
tember 21, 1 73 1, Received from Carl Nier the sum of forty
golden for hinges for the church. Benjamin Van Steenburgen."
This is the English of papers written in Dutch. They tell us
that the Carl Neher whose tombstone tells us that he died on
the 25th of January, 1733, and is the oldest in its burying ground
was actively employed in the erection of the edifice of the
church in 1730. Of the cost and character of this house there
are no records to give us information. " The Stone Church,"
the name by which it has been distinguished for more than a
century, was built some time before the Revolution. In 1824
this was remodeled and enlarged, and embellished with its pre-
sent tall and handsome tower. The expense of this improve-
ment was about three thousand dollars, and we recall the name
of Philip Schuyler, Esq., as one of the building committee, and
that of Stephen McCarty as the builder. hi 1843 it was stuc-
coed and otherwise improved at an expense of some eleven
hundred dollars.
I02 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
The present parsonage house was built in 1798, for Dominie
Quitman. It is therefore more than eighty years old. It is a
commodious dwelling, well preserved for its years. When Do-
minie N. W. Goertner added the Red Hook church to his
charge, or soon after, he took up his residence in that village,
and the church let the parsonage until the two churches became
independent charges. It was at one time let to Coert DuBois,
at another to Rev. Stephen Schuyler, and we think to Cornelius
Nelson, and others.
Where the parsonage was located before 1798, if there was
one, we can find no one to tell us. The following receipt was
found among its papers :
" Received Red Hook, 12th April, 1793, of the Rev. George
Henry Pfeiffer seventeen and a half bushels wheat on account
of back rent due before the death of Robert G. Livingston (the
elder), Esq.
"17 1-2 Bu. Wheat. JNO. Reade."
ITS BOOK OF RECORDS.
The oldest book in the possession of the church has lost a
number of its pages, and is an imperfect record.
At one time it evidently contained a list of all the families?
with the names of all the children in each, who constituted the
Lutheran populations of Oueensburg and Rhinebeck, the
church in the former, in later days, becoming the Camp
Church. The Oueensburg record seems complete. It contains
fifty-four families, numbering three hundred and twenty-five
persons. From the Rhinebeck list a number of leaves are miss-
ing, and it is not possible now to tell how many families there
were, or how many persons they contained. A paper written
by Christoval Hagadorn, at Queensburg, in 1734, shows that
these records were made by his hand.
The record of baptisms is also incomplete. Thirty-six bap-
tisms by Johannes Spahler are missing. He baptized one hundred
and eighty-four children. The first on record was that of Peter
Berg, son of Christian Berg, on Nov. 20, 1733. numbered thirty-
seven ; and the last, that of P. Dederick, on March 28, 1736.
Dominic Hartwick bears testimon)' in a record at the head of
THE LUTHERAN CHURCH. IO3
one of the pages, that these baptisms were by Dominie Spahler.*
He records no marriages, confirmations, or communion services,
in this book. From March 28, 1746, to July 6, 1758, the re-
cord is complete, and all in the hand of Johan Christoval Hart-
wig. In this period of eleven years, there is not one in which
he is not present and at work with the people of this church.
In 1746. he records twent\--eight baptisms, six in Ancram ; in
1747, thirtj'-nine, two in Ancram ; in 1748, forty-six, two in An-
cram, six in Staatsburg ; in 1749, forty-nine, two in Ancram, two
in Staatsburg; in 1750, fifty-six, ten in Ancram, one in Staats-
burg; in 1751, thirty-one; in 1752, forty-five; in 1753, thirty!
in 1754, thirty-three; in 1755, five ; in 1756, twenty-seven; in
1757, five. There are here three hundred and ninety-two bap-
tisms. At the head of one of the pages, in 175 1, he makes a
note of the fact that he has returned from Pennsylvania; but
there is no evidence that he surrendered the charge of the
church here when he went there. He records sixty marriages
and thirty-four confirmations. Of ten persons confirmed by
him in 1748, one had been baptized by Van Dreissen, six by
Berkenmeyer, one by Vas, one by Maucius, and one by Spah-
ler. Of seven confirmed in 1749, one had been baptized by
Van Dreissen, one by Mancius, two by Spahler, and three by
Berkenmeyer. It does not follow that any of these persons
were baptized in Rhinebeck, though it is probable some of
them were. Vas and Mancius were in Kingston, and Van
Dreissen in Columbia County, and, so far as we can learn, had
never been in Rhinebeck. Spahler served the Camps, and
Rhinebeck, as early as 1723; and he may have baptized the
children in one place or the other. Berkenmeyer had been at
the Camps frequently, and the following document shows that
he had made at least one visit to Rhinebeck.
" Reynbeck, 1744, June 6.
" Received from ye vestry of Rynbeck two pounds tenn and
*A deed to Johannes Spaller, dated 1723, for land now in the possession of
Samuel Ten Broeck, calls him "minister at the Kamps and Rinbach." This was
when the Lutherans were united with the Reformers, at Pink's corner.
I04 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
six shillings, in behalf of ye money for ye minister and ye assu-
rance ; I say Received by me.
''£2: 16: o. W. C. Berkenmeyer."*
Spahler and Hartvvickf both served the Camp and Rhine-
beck churches. Johannes Frederick Reis succeeded the latter
in 1760 and became the pastor of the Wertemburg, as well as
of the Camp, Churchtown and Rhinebeck churches. He died
in 1 79 1, and was buried at Churchtown. Whether he served
the Tarbush church also, we have not learned. That he did an
efficient work in the Rhinebeck church, his record clearly testi-
fies. His pastorate commenced on the 7th day of March, 1760,
and ended on the 5th of January, 1783. We find no record of
marriages or burials in his hand. On a Sunday in 1783, he had
one hundred and fift}' persons with him at the communion
table. He recorded the baptisms of eight hundred and fifteen
children.
George H enrich Pfeiffer succeeded Reis in the pastorate. He
recorded his first baptism on the 17th of May, 1784, and the
last on January 29, 1798, serving the church fourteen years.
He baptised six hundred and sixty children, and recorded the
marriage of three hundred and thirty-eight couples. He wrote
a legible but peculiar hand, and kept a complete record. A
tombstone in the Rhinebeck churchyard closes his history, as
follows :
" Sacred to the viciiwry ^/Geo. H. Pfeiffer, a native of Ger-
many, pastor of the Lutheran congregation in Rhinebeck, zvho
died Oct. 26. 1827, aged about ^o years!'
Frederick Henry Quitman succeeded Pfeiffer in the pastorate,
in 1798. He recorded his first baptism on the i8th of February,
1798, and his last on the 23d of August, 1 830. The last in his
* On page 594, the Documentary History of New York tells us that William
Christov Berkenmeyer was a protestant Lutheran minister " in ye city and county
of Albany in 1746."
f John Christover Hartwick obtained a grant of 21,500 acres of land from the
government in 1754. He died at the residence of Mrs. Judge Livingston, in Cler-
mont, on the 17th of July, 1796, aged 82 years and 6 months, and was buried at the
Camp Lutheran Church. His remains were subsequently removed to Albany and
buried under the pulpit of the Ebenezer Lutheran Church of that city. Hartwick
Seminary, at Cooperstown, is named in his honor ; was erected and is largely sup-
ported with means left for that purpose in his will.
THE LUTHERAN CHURCH. IO5
own hand bears date September 21, 1826. Between this date
and the former, there is a record of 69 baptisms, evidently by
him, but entered by another. There are thus one thousand five
hundred and twenty baptisms to his credit. His marriages
number seven hundred and eight couples. Among these we
find that of Rev. Augustus Warkerhagen to Mary Mayer, and
that of Rev. Frederick G. Mayer to Margaret Kirk. Among
the baptisms we note those of Robt. Clermont, and Edward,
sons of Edward, and Fitz William Pitt, son of Philip Livingston
George Bethune, son of Benjamin Schultz, and Walter, son of
William Scott. Under the head of " Solemn Interments," he
records that on the 27th of September, 1809, Philip Coopernail
died from a fractured skull, occasioned by being thrown from a
horse ; and that on the 21st of August, 1809, Jane Van Keuren,
wife of Frederick Berringer, was instantly killed by a stroke of
lightning. He was buried in the cemetery of the Rhinebeck
church, and his tomb bears the following inscription ;
" Frederick Henry Quitman, born in the Duchy of Cleves,
Westphalia, Aug. 7, 1760. Died at Rhinebeck, June 26, 1832."
A tablet in the church tells us that his wife, Elizabeth
Hueck, died Feb. 24, 1805, aged 37 years. Gen. John Quitman,
the distinguished soldier, and Governor of Mississippi, was his son.
Rev. William J. Eyer succeeded him in the pastorate. His
first baptism was recorded on the 24th of October, 1828, and
his last on the 17th of March, 1836. He recorded the baptism of
one hundred and forty-six children, and four marriages, the last
dated February 28th, 1833. We presume it was about this
date when he ceased to minister to the Rhinebeck church, and
<levoted himself exclusively to his Wertemburgh charge.
Rev. N. W. Goertner succeeded Dominie Eyer. He record-
ed his first baptism in January, 1837, and his last, on the 24th
of October, 1845. He baptized one hundred and seventeen
children, and buried ninety-eight people. We find no record
of his marriages. It was during his ministry that the Red Hook
German Reformed church was brought into the Lutheran fold,
and added to his charge. He took up his residence in Red
Hook, and we presume the record of his marriages in both
churches is to be found there.
I06 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
Rev. Dr. Charles Shaeffer succeeded Goertner, and the
only record of his work we can find is the following, " transfer-
red from the book of Zion Church, Red Hook, by Frederick
M. Bird."
Confirmations: Seven in 1846; ten in 1847; two in 1848;
four in 1849 ! ^'''^^ ^^ 1850.
Rev. Dr. Strobel succeeded Dr. Schaeffer, and, like him,
left his records in Red Hook, and, therefore, beyond our pre-
sent reach. There are thirteen confirmations transferred out of
the Red Hook to the Rhinebeck book by Frederick M. Bird,
the first dated on Whitsunday, 1852, and the last on May 16,
1858. After Dr. Strobel's pastorate, the Red Hook and Rhine-
beck churches became independent charges.
Rev. Frederick M. Bird succeeded Dr. Strobel. His first
baptism is dated December 6, i860, and his last in June, 1862.
He baptized twenty-two children, married eight couples, con-
firmed ten, and buried ten persons. He states the membership
of his church, " as near as can be computed," at one hundred
and two persons.
Rev. George W. Schmucker succeeded Mr. Bird. He record-
ed his first baptism on the 25th of December, 1862, and the
last on the ist of April, 1871. He baptised twenty-two chil-
dren, married twenty-two couples, confirmed thirty-three, and
buried seventy-three persons.
Rev. Charles Koerner succeeded Mr. Schmucker. He re-
corded his first baptism on the 1st of May, 1870, and his last
on the 1 8th of October, 1880. He baptized six children, mar-
ried six couples, confirmed eleven, and buried seventeen per-
sons.
Rev. Samuel G. Finkel succeeded Dominie Koerner, com-
mencing his pastorate in 1871. He recorded his first baptism
on the I ith of August, 1871, and his last on the 24th of March,
1878. He baptized twenty-seven children, married four couples,
confirmed forty-five, and buried seventy-two persons.
Rev. J. A. Earnest is the present incumbent. He has the
confidence and affections of his people, and there is no reason
why, having long life and adequate support, he should not be
in the beginning of a long pastorate.
THE REFORMED DUTCH CHURCH. I07
P. S. — A baptism recorded in the Pultz family says it took
place in " Stadtsburger Kircke," in Rhinebeck. This was in
1756. Whatever was done in Staatsburg was recorded in Rhine-
beck. The church at Staatsburgh has passed out of the recol-
lection of the oldest people living. Whether the Rhinebeck
minister ceased to go to Staatsburgh when he went to Witten-
burgh, nobody knows. The Staatsburgh church had no records
except in Rhinebeck. It is certain the Wittenburgh church
grew out of the Rhinebeck, not the Staatsburgh church.
CHAPTER XVI.
REFORMED DUTCH CHURCH.
The first step in the history of the Reformed Dutch Church
on the Flatts was taken when Henry Beekman presented to
Lawrence Osterhout, Jacob Kip and William Traphagen, for
themselves and "the rest of the inhabitants of the North Ward,
in Dutchess County," the following deed :
" To all Christian people to whom this present writing shall
or may come, Henry Beekman, of the city of New York, gen-
tleman, sends greeting : Know yee that the said Henry Beek-
man for the love, good will and affection which he hath and
bears toward the inhabitants, and those that shall hereafter be
the inhabitants, of the North Ward in Dutchess County and
province of New York, hath given, granted, and by these pre-
sents doth freely, clearly and absolutely give and grant unto the
said inhabitants, being of the profession as is practiced in the
Reformed Church of Holland, all that certain lot of land in
Dutchess County, in the north ward, situated on the southwest-
erly side of a large plain near the now gristmill of the said
Henry Beekman, lying in the corner of the King's road, and
that which parts therefrom easterly to the neighborhood of Se-
pascot, where now Simon Westfall lives, being the southwest-
erly corner of 'the arable land now in the occupation of said
Henry Beekman, to contain there, in one square piece, two
acres of land ; and also another tract of land, situate, lying and
being in the north ward, in Dutchess County aforesaid, on the
north side of a certain creek, called Landsman's Kill, near the
I08 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
house of William Schut, beginning at a stone put in the ground
on the north side of the said creek ; from thence, running north
twenty chains, to a stone put in the ground ; then east, one de-
gree south, nineteen chains, to a white oak saplin, marked ;
then south twenty chains to the said creek ; then along the
same as it winds and turns to the first station ; being bounded
to the south by the creek, and on other sides by land of the
said Henry Beekman ; containing forty and four acres, two
quarters and thirty and eeven perches: — To have and to hold
the said two parcels of land to be hereby granted, and every
part and parcel thereof, unto the inhabitants aforesaid, which
now are, or hereafter forever shall be the inhabitants of the
said ward, for the use, and in the manner following : that is to
say, that two elders and two deacons shall annually be chosen
and appointed by majority votes of the said inhabitants being
of the profession aforesaid, and shall be approved of by the
Dutch Reformed minister, elders and deacons of the Dutch
Reformed Church of Kingston, in the county of Ulster, every
year, to act as trustees until they shall be in quality to call a
minister of their own, who then, with the other two elders and
two deacons so chosen and appointed as aforesaid, shall and
may act according to the establishment of the Reformed Church
of Holland ; and that the said congregation may in the mean-
while, and likewise hereafter, erect and build on said two acres
of land, such church or meeting house, and other buildings as
to them shall seem meet and convenient ; and that the remain-
der of said two acres of land they may appropriate for a com
mon burying place according to the custom and discipline of
the said church and such lands, and not otherwise ; and the
other tract shall be Imployed to the benefit and behoof of the
church forever; and the said congregation shall maintain and
keep the said two acres of land, or such part thereof as they shall
think convenient, in a good and sufficient fence, and shall
build thereon some or one building as is hereby intended, with-
in the space of three years now next ensuing, and in neglect
whereof, or that any time hereafter the said two acres of land
and premises hereby granted or intended to be granted, shall
be neglected and abolished, contrary to what it is intended to
THE REFORMED DUTCH CHURCH. IO9
be given for, that in any such case or cases, the before recited
tracts or parcels of land to Revoline its property to the said
Henry Beekman, his heirs and assigns, as if such instrument as
these presents had never been made. And the said inhabitants
being of the profession as aforesaid ; or such minister, elders
and deacons as shq,ll hereafter be called, chosen or appointed,
shall have liberty to cut, break or carry away any stone, or
wood, or timber from any part of the unimproved lands of said
Henry Beekman : that is to say, for the use of said land and
premises, and toward the building of such buildings as shall be
erected and made on the said land, or any part thereof.
" In witness whereof, the said Henry Beekman put his hand
and seal, this 26th day of August, Anno Dom. 1730.
" Provided, nevertheless, and it is the true intent and mean-
ing of these presents, and of the parties to the same, that nothing
herein contained shall extend, or be construed to grant to any
person or persons whatsoever, the liberty or lysense to cut or
carry away any timber, wood or stone, or other things whatso-
ever, on or off from the wood called Book Boss, or any other of
the lands of said Henry Beekman, but where the same shall be
necessary or convenient and used for building a church, school
house, chapel, meeting house, or building on the lot of ground
aforesaid, and for no other use or purpose whatever ; neither
shall any person sell any wine, rum, brandy, beer, cider, or other
spirits, nor peddle, trade merchandise on the hereby granted
premises, or any part thereof ; and in case anything shall be
done contrary to the meaning of these presents, this deed to
be void, and the estate to revert to the said Henry Beekman,
his heirs and assigns, as if the same had never been made.
" Henry Beekman, [l. s.]
" Witnesses,
" Barrent Van Wagenen,
"Albert Pawling."
The first election of church officers under this deed was
held on the 28th of June, 1731. Two elders chosen were Hen-
dricus Heermance and Jacob Kip, and the deacons. Jacobus
Van Etten and Isaac Kip. The elders and two deacons were
thus elected annually and approved by the minister and consis-
no KHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
tory of the Kingston church, as required by the terms of this
deed, until 1742, when the church on the Flatts found " itself
in quahty " to support a minister in connection with the German
Reformed Church, at Rhinebeck. All the records in this period
of eleven years, of the election and installation of church offi-
cers, are in the handwriting of Dominie Petrus Vas, of Kings-
ton. Besides these, there are receipts for money paid him, over
his own signature, for every year from 1733 to 1742 ; and there
were persons received into the membership of the church here
in every other year, in the same period, and a record made of
their names, in every instance in the hand of Dominie Vas.
There is a record in the same period of one hundred and twenty-
five baptisms and thirty-eight marriages. Of the baptisms
ninety-two are in the hand of Dominie Vas, twenty-eight in
that of Dominie George Wilhelm Mancius, also of Kingston,
and five in that of Dominie Cornelius Van Schie, of Pough-
keepsie. Of the marriages a large majority are, also, in the
hand of Dominie Vas.
That a house was built as early as 1733 we think quite cer
tain. The deed required it to be built by this time, and old
monuments, still to be found in its graveyard, tell us that the
ground was appropriated for burial purposes in this year. It is
not probable that this step would have been taken in advance
of the erection of the edifice necessary to secure the title to the
property. We assume, therefore, that the house was built in
due time, and that services were conducted in it, as occasion
required, by the minister from Kingston, for the baptism of
children, the publication of intended marriages, the reception
of church members, and the installation of the officers required
by the deed.
The first meeting of the consistory on record was held on
the iith of July, 1741, and its proceedings, recorded in the
Dutch language, were as follows, in English :
" Proceedings of a meeting of the consistory of the church
on the Flatts, by coll. Henry Beekman's mill, in Dutchess coun-
ty, July 1 1, 1741.
"After mature deliberation, we have thought good for weigh-
ty reasons that the men should purchase their seats for each fam-
THE REFORMED DUTCH CHURCH. I I I
ily for one pound ten shillings each place. The four places on
the left hand of coll. Beekman's Bench, near the door, shall be
let for two shillings yearly, each place, as long as the consistory
think right. The justices of the peace shall be next. When it
happens that the gallery shall be made in the church, then the
males in the two first pews in the right and left hand in the
church shall leave their places for women's benches, and shall
have their places again in the gallery. All the first comers in
the benches must make room for the next."
The elders at this time were Andries Heermance, Roeloff
Kip, Gose Van Wagenen, and Gysbert Westfall ; the deacons,
Juyre Tremper, Jan Van Etten, Hendrick Kip, and Mathews
Earnest. They held a second consistory meeting on Oct. i,
1 741, the proceedings of which were as follows ;
" Proceedings in a meeting of the consistory of the church
on the Flatts by coll. Henry Beekman's mill, in Dutchess
eounty.
After mature deliberation, we have thought good for weighty
reasons that the females shall have their places for life for six
shillings, and at their deaths their daughters, or any of their
near relatives, shall have their places for the same price of six
shillings. Moreover, the first comers in the bench must make
room for the next. We have thought good that no women let
any man sit in their places, or they shall forfeit their seats."
George Michael Weiss came into the pastorate of this
church in 1742, and served it, in connection with the German
Reformed Church, until 1746. In this period there is a record
of one hundred and twenty-six baptisms, and one hundred and
fifteen additions to the church membership.
From the 15th of April, 1746 to 1750, there is apparently
no settled pastor. There were in the mean time sixty-one bap-
tisms ; fifty-five of these were by George Wilhelm Mancius, and
six by Dominie Goetschius. There were in this period thirty
marriages recorded in a strange hand ; but since nearly all the
baptisms were by Mancius, the marriages were probably also by
him, and recorded from slips by the church clerk. There were
six additions to the membership of the church in the same time.
Their names are recorded in the unmistakable hand of Mancius,
112 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
who seems to haye stood this infant church in good stead, as he
did the German church at Rhinebeck, in the day of its need.
Eggo Tonkens Van Hovenburg came into the pastorate of
the church, it appears, on the 23d of December, 1750, and con-
tinued therein to the 26th of February, 1763. There are eight
hundred and sixteen baptisms, and seventy-six marriages re-
corded in his hand.
From the close of Van Hovenburgh's pastorate to March
26th, 1769, there was no settled pastor, the church being served
at intervals by Gerhard Daniel Cock, of the Camp and Rhine-
beck German Reformed churches, Johannes Casparus Fryen-
moet, of Livingston's Manor, and Isaac Rysdyk, of Poughkeep.
sie and Fishkill. There was but one marriage in all this time,
and that is recorded in the hand of Freynmoet, the parties
being Tunis Turpenning and Breehje Van Akin ; there were
forty-five baptisms, and twenty-six additions to the membership
of the church.
On the 26th of March, 1769, Warmaldus Kuypers came
into the pastorate, and remained therein until September 29th,
1 77 1. He married twelve couples, baptised one hundred and
seven children, and added fifty members to the church.
From the termination of Kuyper's pastorate in 1771 to
1776, the church was again without a settled pastor. At this
period the country was in the throes of the Revolution ; and it
is interesting to note the condition of the churches. The offi-
cers in this church were regularly elected in 1772, and 1773,
and installed by Gerhard Daniel Cock, still of the Camp and
Rhinebeck German Reformed churches. On the 2d of August,
1772, the elders elected were Jan Van Etten and Tunis Van
Benschoten, and the deacon Petrus Stoutenburg.
Iri 1773 Johannes Van Wagenen and Johannes Krepser
were elected elders, and Christoval Weaver and Jacobus Kip
deacons. On the 19th of June, 1773, Isaac DeLamater was re-
ceived into the church, and on the 20th, Jacomintje Turck, wife
of Wilhelm Sehepmus, both by Dominie Cock. There were six
baptisms on the 31st of August, also by him. This is all the
work done until December 12, 1774, when there are twelve bap-
tisms, apparently in the handwriting of Stephen Van Voorhees.
THE REFORMED DUTCH CHURCH. II3
On the 2d of June, 1776, one month before the Declaration of
Independence, he is evidently the pastor, and continue thus
until December 18, 1785, one year after the close of the war.
During this pastorate of nine years he recorded two hundred
and ten marriages, three hundred and sixty-four baptisms, and
a large addition to the membership of the church. He made
the record of his addition to the membership of the church on
the fly-leaves, in the front of the book, two of which are evi-
dently missing, carrying with them the records for 1776 to 1777.
Those left contain sixty-eight names, probably not more than
three-fourths of those recorded by him. His records are in
English, and very orderly.
From December 18, 1785, to October the 28th, 1787, there
is no pastor. In 1786 there are nine baptisms by Gerhard Dan-
iel Cock, still of the Camp and Rhinebeck German churches.
On the 28th of October, 1787, Dominie Petrus DeWitt com-
mences his record in Dutch, as follows :
" Children baptized by Do. Petrus DeWitt, preacher at
Rhinebeck Flatts and Red Hook New church." This Red
Hook church was the Dutch Reformed church in the village of
Upper Red Hook, founded in 1785. He recorded the baptism
of two hundred and seventy-one children in the Rhinebeck
Flatts 'church.
On the 7th of March, 1788, the Legislature of the State of
New York passed an act making alterations in the act for the
incorporation of religious societies, rendering it more convenient
to the Reformed Protestant Dutch congregations. On the 6th
day of June, 1789, this church took the steps required to be-
come a body corporate under this new act, and took the name
of " The Reformed Protestant Dutch Church of Rhynbeek
Flats."
John Broadhead Romeyn succeeded DeWitt, coming into
the pastorate in 1799 and going out in 1803. He served the
church three years and nine months, baptizing one hundred and
two children.
On the 1st day of October, 1801, Mrs. Montgomery pre-
sented the church with an acre of ground to take the place of
that taken by the extension of East Market street through the
church lands, which was done in this year.
114 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
This acre of ground lies on the north side of East Market
street, opposite the Episcopal church, and tells us why the
church land extends farther west on the north than on the
south side of the said street. And this acre is all the land ever
given to the church by Mrs. Montgomery. We have converoed
with people in the church who believed that all the lands owned
by the church were a gift from Mrs. Montgomery. We have
seen that they were a gift from her grandfather, Henry Beek-
man, the son of Henry the patentee, twelve years before she
was born, and seventy years before the lands of the village of
Rhinebeck Flatts fell to her lot by the gift or death of her mo-
ther.
It was also during the pastorate of Dominie Romeyn that
"the church lands were released, or attempted to be released,
from the restriction forbidding their occupancy by liquor sellers,
shopmen and pedlars, in an indenture bearing date September
2, 1801.
This document is sealed for fourteen signatures, and four-
teen persons are named therein as the parties of the first part.
Why the signatures of Chancellor Livingston and his sister,
Mrs. Montgomery, alone were obtained, and why the document
was not at once put on record, we have not learned. Mrs. Mont-
gomery having fallen heir to the lands on the Flatts within the
limits of which the church lands are included, perhaps her sig-
nature alone was required to give the release desired.
John Broadhead Romeyn was succeeded in the pastorate
by Rev. Jacob Broadhead, who served the church from 1804 to
1 8 10. His first baptism was dated August 26, 1804, and his
last, April 3, 18C9. He recorded the baptism of forty children,
and five adults, three of the latter being slaves.
The present substantial church edifice was built in 1 807-8,
and therefore during the ministry of Rev. Jacob Broadhead.
The building committee were Jacob Schultz, William Radcliff,
Abraham Van Keuren and John Van Etten. The work was
done by contract, the church furnishing all the material. John
Coddington, of New York, did the mason work, and Cornelius
C. Welch the carpenter work ; John Cox built the window
frames ; John Wilson and Robert McCarty built the sash ; John
THE REFORMED DUTCH CHURCH. II5
Wilson, Stephen McCarty, Daniel Tittemore, Henry Teal and
Robert McCarty did the joiner work, according to the plan
made by John Wilson ; James Dunham burnt two hundred
thousand brick on the lot of Abraham DeLamater, at $2.50 per
thousand ; and Aaron Camp superintended all the work at ten
shillings a day, and found himself. The largest subscriptions
to the building fund came from the heirs of Henry Beekman,
the children of his daughter Margaret. Janet Montgomery
gave $200 ; Thomas Tillotson, $200; Morgan Lewis, $2CXD; John
R. Livingston, $100; Peter R. Livingston, $100 ; Robert R.
Livingston, $50; Philip Schuyler, $100; William Radcliff, Ja
cob Schultz, Henry Pells, Aldert Smedes, and Abraham Adri-
ance, gave $100 each ; Peter Brown gave $70; and, seemingly,
the whole community took an interest in the enterprise, and
the subscriptions were generally liberal. It was at this date the
only church in the village of Rhinebeck Flatts, and six miles
distant from the German Reformed church, rebuilt in what is
now Lower Red Hook.
Among those who took pews at the completion of the church,
we find the names of Governor Lewis, Chancellor Livingston,
Mrs. Montgomery, Peter R. Livingston, Thomas Tillotson,
John R. Livingston, Philip Schuyler, Henry Beekman Livings-
ston. These people are long since dead, and their descendants
are no longer found among the members and pew holders of
this church.
Jacob Broadhead was succeeded in the pastorate by Dom-
inie McMurray. He served the church from 18 12 to 1820, and
baptized one hundred and ninty-four children, and three adults.
He is credited with a pastorate of eight years and seven months.
William McMurray was succeeded by David Parker, who
served the church from 1820 to 1827, and is credited with a
pastorate of six years and six months. He baptized one hun-
dred and eighteen children, and one adult. David Parker was
succeeded by Rev. George W. Bethune, who served the church
from 1827 to 1830, and is credited with a pastorate of two years.
His first baptism is dated, November 11, 1827, and his last,
November 8, 1829. He baptized thirty children and three
adults.
Il6 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
The present parsonage was completed during the pastorate
of Dominie Bethune, and he was the first occupant. The old
parsonage, a stone building, stood near the site of the present
parsonage barn. The premises, we are told, were laid out and
the trees planted under his direction ; and the internal arrange-
ment of the house was mainly of his planning. He was fond of
horses, kept an excellent span, which he took great delight in
driving. He kept a colored man to groom and take care of
them. He was as genial as he was talented, and his pastorate
is remembered with pride by a good many people still to be
found in the community.
George W. Bethune was succeeded by James B. Harden-
bergh, who came into the pastorate in 1830, and went out in
1836, serving the church for six years and seven months. His
first baptism is dated, September 19, 1830, and his last, No-
vember 6, 1836. He baptized one hundred and twelve children,
and six adults, and is credited with a pastorate of six years and
seven months.
Dominie Hardenburgh was a good financier, lived on his
salary, and it is said, "saved money." He left the savor of a
good name and a good record with the community.
James B. Hardenburgh was succeeded by Rev. James
Lillie, who came into the pastorate in 1837, ^^'^^ went out in 1841.
His first baptism is dated, August 20, 1737, and his last, Aug-
ust , 1 841. He has a record of twenty baptisms, and is credited
with a four years' pastorate. He kept an unclerkly record, and
that of his baptisms is a meagre one ; perhaps so because he
declined to baptize the children of parents who were not them-
selves members of the church.
Dominie Lillie's pastorate was a short but memorable one.
He was a Scotchman, and a graduate of the Edinburg Univer-
sity, a profouud scholar, and, warmed by his theme, an eloquent
and magnetic speaker. He had a good body and a large brain,
and was thus by nature a strong man. He was self conscious,
and not always politic, but thoroughly honest. He never quail-
ed before an antagonist, and, of course, when he met a Greek
"there was the tug of war." His controversies with the agent
of the Dutchess County Temperance Society, on the Wine
THE REFORMED DUTCH CHURCH. II7
Question in his own church, and with the champions of the La-
dies Benevolent Society, when they diverted their funds from
the support of the missionary, Thompson, to the repair of the
church and parsonage, are events never to be forgotten in the
history of Rhinebeck by those who witnessed them. He held
that the wine commended in the Bible was fermented, and that
the husbands of pious wives who were not themselves members
of the church, put "untempered mortar in the walls of Zion,"
when permitted to meddle in its affairs.
Dr. Lillie was succeeded by Rev. Brogan Hoff. He came
into the pastorate in 1842, and went out in 1851. His first
baptism was recorded on the 23d of March, 1841, and his last
on the nth of July, 1851. He baptized thirty-three children
and eighteen adults, and is credited with a pastorate of nine
years and one month.
Brogan Hoff was succeeded by Rev, Peter Stryker. He
came into the pastorate in 185 1, and remained in it until 1856.
He recorded his first baptism on the 30th of January, 1852, and
his last on the ist of February, 1856. He baptized fifty-two
persons, of whom thirteen were adults ; married thirty-two
couples, and added one hundred and sixty-two members to the
church. His pastorate embraced four years and three months
and he left the country for a city charge.
The recess and new pulpit were built, the heaters put in,
and the church edifice otherwise greatly improved in conven-
ience and appearance during Dominie Stryker's pastorate.
Peter Stryker was succeeded by Rev. William A. Miller,
who came into the pastorate in 1856 and went out in 1859. He
recorded his first baptism on the 12th of October, 1856, and
his last on the 15th of September, 1859. He recorded the bap!
tism of seven children and five adults, married seventeen couples
and added twenty-one persons to the membership of the church.
Dominie Miller came among us an invalid, and hoped by a
change of air and employment to regain his health. This hope
was not realized, and he tried the experiment of a sea voyage
and tour in Europe, with the consent and assistance of his peo-
ple. After an absence of several months he returned, appar-
ently improved in health, but, as the sequel showed, really no
Il8 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
better. He soon relinquished his charge and tried the effect of
different locaHties and chmates in his own country, but all to
no purpose. He di^d in 1863.
William A. Miller was succeeded by Rev. Heman R. Tim-
low, who came into the pastorate in 1759, and went out in
1766. He recorded his first baptism on the 25th of March,
i860, and his last on the 3d of August, 1866. He baptized sev-
enteen children and two adults, married thirty-five couples, and
added fifty-nine members to the church.
Heman R. Timlow was succeeded by Rev. Goyn Talmage.
He came into the pastorate in 1867, and went out in 1871, and
is credited with a pastorate of four years and seven months.
He recorded his first baptism on the 2d of August, 1867, and
his last on the ist of December, 1871. He baptized fifteen per-
sons, of whom ten were adults, married twenty-nine couples, and
added fifty-nine members to the church.
Goyn Talmage was succeeded by Rev. Alonzo P. Peeke.
He came into the pastorate in 1872, and went out in 1879, serv-
ing the church for seven years and two months. He recorded
his first baptism on the 3d of August, 1872, and his last on the
lOth of July, 1879. ^^ baptized twenty-seven persons, of whom,
it appears, twenty were adults. He married fourteen couples,
and added forty-eight members to the church.
Rev. L. Walter Lott is Dominie Peek's successor. He
was ordained, and iiistalled pastor of the church, on the 7th of
October, 1879. ^^ i^ thus on the threshold of his career as a
Christian minister, and in the beginning of his pastorate.
THE CHURCH LANDS.
Excepting the Episcopal Church property, and the Fran-
cisco premises, all of the village of Rhinebeck lying east of
Mulberry street and south of Chestnut street, is built on church
land. It is traversed by South, East Market, Livingston, Parson-
age and Beach streets. On the laying out of these streets, this
land was laid out in lots. These lots have all been sold under
durable leases, subject to a yearly rent. On some of the lots
the rents are low, and on others higher, according to the prices
paid for the leases, and the time of purchase. We count over
THE WURTEMBURGH CHURCH. II9
ninety houses on this land. On the church and cemetery lot of
two acres, the houses of William Bergh Kip, Levy Leroy, and
Mrs. John Killmer, on Mill street, pay rent to the church.
THE CEMETERY.
The old cemetery was abandoned in 1845, "ot because it
was full, but because it lies near the centre of the village, and
interments were prohibited by the corporate authorities. There
is a tradition among the people of this church that Col. Henry
Beekman, the donor of the church lands, was buried in its cem-
etery, near the old church, and that the new edifice was built
over his grave. His descendants have no knowledge at variance
with this tradition. And yet it is singular there is no tablet or
monument to be found, to establish the fact. He died on the
3d of January, 1776, six months before the Declaration of Inde-
pendence by the American Congress. His daughter and only
child, Margaret, widow of Judge Robert R. Livingston, died in
June, 1800.
CHAPTER XVn.
ST. PAUL'S OE WURTEMBERGH,
On the 20th of March, 1759, two farmers residing in the
part of the precinct of Rhinebeck, called at that time " Whita-
berger Land," addressed a letter to Henry Beekman, the pro-
prietor of said laud, and received the following answer :
" New York, April 17, 1759.
" Messrs. Wager & Boltz : — Having received your letter
of the 20th ult., concerning leave to build a church, &c., which
reasonable request I willingly grant, and give you what further
assurance that shall be adjudged for such purpose necessary,
wishing you good prosperity in the meanwhile, am and remain,
Your well wishing friend,
Henry Beekman.
To conduct a church in those days, required a government
license, and to receive and collect subscriptions for the erection
of a church edifice, a special charter. That these were at once
I20 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
obtained and the edifice erected is certain. And it is equally
certain the edifice was erected and a graveyard opened on the
premises of said Wager and Boltz. On the 5th of September,
1774, Henry Beekman conveyed to Johannes Markwat, Michael
Pultz and Adam Dipple, trustees, for the time being, of said
church, nineteen acres and three-quarters of land lying adjacent
to the lands of Leonard Wager and the "Jacomintie Fly convey-
ance," " for the sole and only proper use, benefit and behoof of
the Protestant Church now erected on the southeast part of
Rhinebeck, commonly called the ' Whitaberger Land.'
On the first day of June, 1785, George and Sebastian Pultz,
and Paul and Sebastian Wager, deeded to the church two acres
of ground, one acre each, " together with all and singular the
buildings, church and churchyard thereon erected and belonging,
the said church being now commonly distinguished as the " Wir.
temburg church." The trustees named in this conveyance
were David Traver, Peter Traver and George Marquart, of
Charlotte precinct, now the town of Clinton. The deed states
that the conveyance is for " the use and benefit of the Protes-
tant congregation or society of said church, * * * so as
they do not occupy any part of the said two acres of land for
any other purpose than for a church and burying ground." On
the 7th of February, 1796, George and Sebastian Pultz re-leased
the north half of the lot, the acre given by themselves, from
this restriction, giving their own consent, and binding their
heirs to give theirs to the trustees of the church to erect"
school house, and conduct a school thereon. It will be n^
that neither of these deeds refers to the church as " St. F
or " Lutheran." It was certainly not known by these
until some time after the Revolution. (-
A new church building was erected in 1802 ; and in >^
the church sold the 19 3-4 acres obtained from Henry Beekn • ■
and employed the proceeds in the payment of a debt incurre
in the erection of the new edifice. Morgan Lewis, and Gertrude
Livingston, his wife, the granddaughter of Henry Beekman, in
whom the fee of the Wurtemburg lands vested at the death of
her mother, gave their consent in proper form to this disposi-
tion of the said land ; and they were sold under an order from
ST PAULS CHURCH. I2I
Chancellor John Lansing, Jr., dated at Albany, February 27,
1807, in response to a petition of the trustees of the " Lutheran
St. Paul's Church in the town of Rhinebeck called Wertembergh."
The church edifice was thoroughly repaired in 1832; and in
1861 it was enlarged and remodelled and put into the shape and
condition in which it is found to-day.
The first baptism in the church was recorded on the 22dof
October, 1760. The first pastor named in the record was Rev.
J. F. Ries. He served the church from 1760 to 1785. George
H enrich Pfifer served as pastor from 1785 to 1794, and was suc-
ceeded for a short period by John Frederick Ernst. Dr. Fred-
rick H. Quitman came into the pastorate in 1798. His con-
tract, bearing date February 8, 1798, requires him to preach to
the people of the church at Rhinebeck eighteen Sundays and
three festival days ; to the people of the church at East Camp,
sixteen Sundays and two festival days ; to the people of the
church at Wertembergh, nine Sundays and one festival day ; and
to the people of the church at Tarbush, seven Sundays and one
festival day. For these services the Rhinebeck people agree to
pay him thirty pounds New York current money, ten bushels
of wheat, and grant him the use of the parsonage and church
lands, he to be responsible for the ten bushels rent-wheat there-
on ; the East Camp* people ^"35 in money, and eight bushels
of wheat, fire-wood, and the free use of the parsonage and
'lurch lands, or £2^ in money instead, if he shall choose not
•e them ; the Wertembergh people ^^30 in money and eight
'of wheat ; and the Tarbush* people £2^ in money and
shels of wheat.
*^f the 4th of February, 1 8 1 5 , Dr. Quitman agreed to preach
rec Wertembergh Church " on every third Sunday during
^ ar, one Sunday excepted — namely, during the winter season
fermon — and from May until October, two sermons — namely,
lit in the German and one in the English language," upon con-
* East Camp and Tarbush were in Columbia County. The former is now Ger-
mantown ; the latter in the Town of Livingston, near Johnstown, and is now the
" Manor Church," in the new locality, farther east and south. The German Camps
were so called because they were the camping grounds of the Palatines brought over
by Governor Hunter in 17 10, at the expense of Queen Anne, of England ; and the
Tarbush is the name given to the pine woods in which they were employed in making
tar for the British government.
122 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
dition that they will pay him " every year, in semi-annual pay-
ments, $200, and between twenty-five and thirty loads of wood,"
the congregation in Rhinebeck to make up what will pay for the
remaining Sundays. They do this at his request, that he may
be " freed in his advancing age from the tedious task of contin-
ued travelling." It thus appears he relinquished the East Camp
and Tarbush churches in 181 5. He continued to serve the
Rhinebeck and Wertembergh churches until 1825. Toward
the close of his ministry he had to be carried to the pulpit, and
retained his seat while preaching. He died in the parsonage
of the Rhinebeck church, and was buried in the Rhinebeck
graveyard. He is well and reverentially remembered by all
who knew him.
William J. Eyer was Dr. Quitman's successor, entering on
the pastorate of the church in September, 1825, and continuing
therein until September, 1839. Rev. George Neff says," shortly
after his settlement he preached altogether in the English lan-
guage, and ministered exclusively to the Wurtembergh church."
A. T. Geissenhainer came into the pastorate in 1838, and
retained it until 1840. He kept his record in a clerkly hand
and in an orderly manner.
Rev. Charles A. Smith succeeded Dominie Geissenhainer
in the pastorate, and retained it until 1850.
Rev. W. N. Scholl succeeded Dominie Smith, and re-
mained pastor of the church until 1855.
. Rev. George Neff succeeded Dominie Scholl, and took
charge of the congregation in July, 1855, retaining it until July,
1876, a period of twenty-one years.
Rev. J. G. Griffith took the pastorate on the ist of Septem.
ber, 1876, and is the present efficient and popular incumbent.
The first baptism by Rev. Charles A. Smith bears date
June 19, 1842 ; the last, December 25, 1849. ^e baptized forty
nine children.
The first baptism by Rev. W. N. Scholl bears date Apr)
13, 1851, and the last, Februaiy 18, 1855. He baptized fort>
two children. The first baptism by Rev. George Neff bean
date August 29, 1855, and the last, April 8, 1874. He
baptized eighty-seven children. The first name on the record
RED HOOK REFORMED CHURCH. I23
of the church is Salome, daughter of Wilhelm Berger, baptized
October 22, 1760; the second, Rosina, daughter of Henrich
Buis, baptized June 8, 1760; the third, Mathias, the son of
Mathias Marshall ; the fourth, Margaretha, daughter of Eber-
hard Wager. These are all there are in 1760. At this date
the Ackerts were Eckers, the Ashers, Eschers ; the Travers,
Trebers ; the Pultzs, Boltzs ; the Waltermeyers, Waldemires ;
the Cookinghams, Kuckenheims ; and the Marquarts, Marck-
worths.
CHAPTER XVIII.
RED HOOK REFORMED CHURCH.
We have found no evidence that there was a church organ-
ization or church edifice anywhere in what is now the town of
Red Hook before 1766. Before this date, Red Hook people
had their church membership in the German Reformed and
Lutheran churches at Rhinebeck, and the Dutch Reformed
church on the Flatts. The first knowledge we get that there
was a Red Hook, is in the records made in the Dutch Reformed
Church here, by Ego Tonkens Van Hovenburgh, of baptisms in
" Roode Hoek," in 175 1. Precisely where he went when he
went to Red Hook has not been definitely settled. We assume
it was in the vicinity of Tivoli, because it was here, near the
river, where the Hollanders from Kingston and Albany -made
their first settlements, and had their most considerable popula-
tion at this early date.
On the 5th of October, 1766, a book of records was opened
in Dutch, in the old Red Church near Madalin, the title page
to which reads as follows : " Church book of the congregation
of Roode Hoek, beginning on the 5th of October, 1766, when,
at the same time, the church was consecrated by the Rev. John
Casper Fryenmoet, minister of Livingston manor, &c., from the
words out of I Kings, viii, 30, whereto God gave his blessing."
Dominie Fryenmoet received into the membership of the
church, on the same day, by certificate from the church on the
Flatts, the following persons : John Vosburgh and his wife, Cor-
nelia Knickerbacker ; Martinus Hoffman ; Louwrentz Knicker-
backerand his wife, Maryke Dyke; Barent Van Benthuysen ; Pe-
124 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
ter Van Benthuysen ; Jacob Heermance and his wife, Catharina
Vosburg ; Volkert Witbeck and his wife, Dorothea Vosburg ;
Thomas Lewis and his wife, Dorothea EHg ; Maria Kip, widow
of Jan Benthuysen ; by letter from Kingston, Zacharias Hoff-
man ; by ditto from Do. Cock, Benjamin Knickerbacker and his
wife, Aletta Halenbeck ; by letter, on the 13th of February,
1767, Alida Livingston, wife of Col. Mart. Hoffman ; and the
Honorable Robert R. Livingston and his wife, Beekman ; ditto,
on the 23d of January, 1768, Anna Christina Phillipena de Haes.
A register of the seats disposed of, and their cost, dated
1766, in the hand of Dominie Kuypers, is as follows:
1 5 places, Pieter Benthuysen. - - ... 6s.
2 10 places, Gerritt Van Benthusen and his son, Barent, los.
3 8 places, Barent J. Van Benthuysen, - - - 22s.
4 8 places, Catharine Ten Broeck, - - - - I2s.
5 8 places, Zacharias Hoffman, - - - - 12s.
6 8 places, Martinus Hoffman, - - - - 12s.
7 8 places, Robert R. Livingston, - - - - 12s.
8 8 places, D. Van Ness, 4; J. Schermerhorn, 2 ; W.
Heermanse, 2, ------ - los.
9 8 places, G. Heermanse, 4; E. Vosburg, 2 ; W.Colom, 2, 9s.
10 8 places, J. Heermance, 4; D. Van Ness, 4, - - I2s.
1 1 10 places, F. Witbeck, 5 ; M. Vosburg, 5, - - 9s.
12 5 places, Benjamin Knickerbacker, - - - 7s.
13 5 places, Nicholas Hoffman, - - - - - ' 5s.
This is followed by a record in Dutch, dated June 12, 1771,
which seems to us to say, the consistory, consisting of W. Kuy-
pers, V. D. M. ; Gerritt Heermans, John Van Ness, Martin Vos-
burg, elders; Zacharias Hoffman, Volkert Witbeck, deacons,
have resolved that all in the habit of attending church in this
house, who have not rented seats, will be asked to pay two shil-
lings each per annum for the seats they will occupy.
This is followed by an order made on the 28th of June,
'775' by Martin Vosburg, Egbert Benson, Nicholas Hoffman^
elders : Thomas Lewis, John Van Ness, Cornelius Swart, dea-
cons, that all who use the " Dodt Kleet " (dead cloth or pall)
shall pay therefor the sum of three shillings.
From 1769 to 1771 the record of additions to the church
is in the hand of Warmaldus Kuypers, who served the church
on the Flatts for the same period. He added thirteen members
THE RED noOK RKFf)RMED CHURCH. 125
to the Red Hook church, and recorded the baptism of eleven
children, one in 1774. Among those added to the membership,
we find the names of Jacob Elmendorf, Cornelius Swart, Mallie
Beekman and Annatje Burhans. Mallie Beekman was the wife
of Cornelius Swart, and Annatje Burhans of Jacob Elmendorf.
The last parties were married in Kingston, January ii, 1751,
and had children baptized in Kingston, as follows : Cornelius,
July 12, 1751 ; Samuel, July 14, 1754; Jan, May 30, 1757 ; Abra-
ham, Aug. 12, 1759; Engeltje, November 8, 1761 ; Jacob, Aug.
12, 1764; Annatje, Aug. 16, 1772; Tobias, January 15, 1775.
Jacob Elmendorf was the son of Cornelius Elmendorf and En-
geltje Heermance, and Annatje Burhans, daughter of Samuel
Burhans and Jenneke Brink. Johannes Beekman and Lydia
Beekman were sponsors at the baptism of a son, Cornelius, of
Cornelius Swart and Mallie Beekman, on the 30th of December,
1770. From 1773 to 1775, the records are in the hand of Dirck
Romeyn. He added ten to the membership of the church, and
baptized fifteen children. Among his additions to the church,
we find the names of Egbert Benson, Harmanus Hoffman and
Catharina Dow, his wife; Nicholas Hoffman and Ede Sylvester,
his wife; Zacharias Hoffman, Jr., and Junnetje Hoffman, his
wife. From 1780 to 1783 there were seventeen additions by Dr.
John H. Livingston. Among these are the names of Margaret
Tillottson, in 1780, Ryer Heermanse and his wife, Maritje Heer-
manse ; Cornelius Elmendorph ; Harmon Whitbeck and his
wife, Mary Sylvester; Eleanor Heermanse, wife of Peter Con-
tine ; Elizabeth Heermance, wife of John Heermance; Cornelia
Vredenburgh, wife of Harmon Hoffman.
From 1783 to 1807, when Dominie Andrew N. Kittle came
into the pastorate, there were no additions to the church re-
corded in this book. There were baptisms in every year from
1766 to 1 8 10. They number, in all, one hundred and ninety-
four. Among the clergymen who served the church for short
periods during this time, we find the names of Fryenmoet, Kuy-
pers, Rysdeck, Van Voorhees, Livingston, Ladley, Samuel
Smith, of Saratoga, Dirck and Jeremiah Romeyn, and Andrew
N. Kittle, of the Dutch Reformed Church, and Dominie Cock
of the German Reformed Church. Among those who had chil-
126 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
dren baptized, we find the names of Robert G. Livingston, Ed-
ward P. Livingston, Philip }{. Livingston, Peter Ten Broeck
Meyer and Lendert Ten Broeck.
The book contains but sixteen marriages, all by Dominie
Kittle. Among these we find that of Hubert Van Wagenen,
of New York, to Mary Wheeler, of Red Hook ; William M.
Smith, of Sharon, Connecticut, to Miss Helen Livingston, daugh-
ter of G. R. Livingston, and George W. Cuyler to Miss Catha-
rine Livingston, daughter of G. R. Livingston.
Two Dutch records in this church, rendered into English,
read as follows.:
"On the i8th of July, 1780, reckoning was done by the
deacons and elders, and found in the chest ^^^36, 12s, 2d. Conti-
nental money, and £2, is. hard money, which is in the hands of
William W. Gilbert. CORNELIUS SwART."
" On the 30th of June, 1785, reckoning was done by the dea-
cons and elders, and found in the chest £<^2. los. Qd. Continen-
tal money, and ^^"5. 12s. Qd. hard money, which is in the hands
of Martin Vosburgh. CORNELIUS SWART."
»
CHAPTER XIX.
THE UPPER RED HOOK CHURCH.
The title page to its oldest book of records tells us in the
handwriting of the Rev. Andrew N. Kittle that this church was
"organized. Anno Domini, 1788, and a union formed with the
Lower Red Hook Church." The Lower Red Hook here named
was not what is now known as Lower Red Hook. It was the
neighborhood of the Old Red Church, northeast of Madalin,
near Hoffman's mills, the history of which was briefly sketched
in the preceding chapter.
Andrew N. Kittle did not come into the pastorate of this
church until 1 807. The union between the two churches was not
formed until 1794, and the organization of the Upper Red
Hook Church was evidently of an earlier date than 1788. The
record of baptisms in its book commences on the 15th day of
December, 1785, and the first record of an election of officers,
in Dutch, reads as follows, in English : " Red Hook, November
THE UPPER RED HoOK CHURCH. 12/
9, 1788. Were chosen members of the consistory thO following
persons : Elder, Peter Heermance, in place of Cornelius Swart,
who goes out ; Deacon, Cornelius Elmendorf in place of David
Van Ness, who goes out." Cornelius Swart and David Van
Ness had thus served a term of office each at this election ; and
Jacob Elmendorf and Ryer Hermance were in office, also by
a previous election. Andrew N. Kittle also gives 1788 as the
year when the Rev. Petrus DeWitt came into the pastorate.
We find in the old book of the Reformed Dutch Church on
Rhinebeck Flatts, a record in his own hand in Dutch, which
reads as follows, in English: "October 8, 1787. Children bap-
tized by Do. Petrus DeWitt, preacher at Rhinebeck Flatts and
Red Hook New Church."
REV. PETRUS DEWITT.
P"rom the 15th of December, 1785, to May 8th, 1791, the
baptisms are in the handwriting of Henry Lyle. They are
all in the same ink, were probably all recorded in one sitting,
and, therefore, copied from slips, or some book not suited to
the taste of the consistory, or in a condition to receive other
necessary 'records. From July 17, 1788, to August 26, 1791,
the records are all in the hand of Dominie DeWitt. He served
the church on Rhinebeck Flatts until 1796. We think he closed
his pastorate in the Red Hook church on the first of July, 1791.
A record in the book of the latter, over his own signature, dat-
ed September 26, 1791, says he made a settlement on this day
with Hendrick Heermanse, David Van Ness, Andrew Heer-
manse, and Andrew G. Heermanse, " elders and deacons of the
New Church at Red Hook," and found them in his debt " for
salary, as minister of that congregation until the first day of
July last, the sum of fifteen pounds, eight shillings and two
pence." By writing " that " instead of tliis congregation he in-
dicates that he did not reside in Red Hook ; and we assume
that he resided in the old stone parsonage of the church in this
village. If he received a regular call to these charges, we have
not found it on record in either church.
Giving him credit for all recorded in the hand of Henry
Lyle, Petrus DeWitt baptized eighty-three children in the
Red Hook church, twenty-one of whom had a Heermance for
128 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY,
father or mother. He added thirteen members to the church,
all of whom, with one exception, were Heermances and their
wives. The exception was Catharine Verplank, wife of Har-
manus Hoffman, who became a member on profession of her
faith, on the 19th of June, 1790. He baptized Philip Verplank
Hoffman, their son, on the lOth of May, 1791. There are no
marriages recorded during his pastorate.
JEREMIAH ROMEYN.
We find the record of a call to Rev. Jeremiah Romeyn,
which tells us that " by reason of the many deaths and remov-
als from the congregation of the Linlithgow church, they are
rendered incapable of paying the salary promised to the said
Romeyn," and united with the two Red Hook congregations
in a call to him to serve the three churches at a salary of one
hundred and fifty pounds, to be paid half-yearly, eighty pounds
by the church of Linlithgow, and seventy pounds by the two
Red Hook churches, the church at Linlithgow to provide him
with a convenient dwelling house and outhouses and with a
glebe of forty acres of land, to be put in good and lawful fence,
and he be provided with sufficient and necessary firewood at
his door. On his part the Rev. Jeremiah Romeyn promised to
perform divine services among them, " according to the received
doctrine and discipline of the Low Dutch Reformed churches
as established in the Synod of Dort ;" to preach one half of his
time to the church at Linlithgow, and the other half, on alter-
nate Sabbaths, to the two churches in Red Hook ; to preach
twice a day from the first Sabbath in April to the first Sabbath
in October ; and in either the Dutch or English language, as
the consistory in either church shall, from time to time, deter-
mine.
This call was agreed to in a united meeting of the three
consistories, held at Clermont, December 14, 1793, the Rev.
Petrus DeWitt acting as moderator. The composition of the
respective consistories was as follows :
Consistory of the Linlithgow church : James Van Deusen,
Barent Ten Eyk, Johannes Stieber, George Snyder, elders;
John Stall, Peter Wagener, Conrad Petrie, Henry Stall, deacons.
Consistory of the church at the road : (Upper Red Hook)
THE UPPER RED HOOK CHURCH. I29
David Van Ness, elder; Andrew Heermans, Simeon Heermans,
deacons.
Consistory of the Old Red Hook Church : Martin Vosburgh,
Thomas Lewis, elders ; Nicholas Hoffman, Harmon Whitbeck
deacons.
The approbation of this call by the classical assembly was
signed by Isaac Labaugh, president, pro tern., and John Demar
est, scribe, pro tern. " In consequence of this call," the Rev.
Jeremiah Romeyn was installed over the church on the 2d of
February, 1794, the Rev. Petrus DeWitt preaching the sermon-
He remained in the charge until 1806, a period of twelve years.
He added fifty-one to the membership of the church, baptized
one hundred and eighty-four children and married seventy
couples. Among those added to the membership of the church
we find the names of Wilhelmina Vredenburgh, wife of Dr.
Wheeler, June 10, 1802; Elizabeth Van Ben.schoten, wife of
Henry Benner, June 3, 1803; John Knickerbocker, Jr., Novem-
ber I, 1805 ; Hendrick Benner, John W. Pitcher, Philip Pitcher,
Peter Rypenburgh and Lawrence Hendricks, by certificate from
the church at Rhinebeck, September 24, 1806 (the church at
Rhinebeck here means the German Reformed Church, then in
what is now Lower Red Hook, of which John W. Pitcher was
a deacon in this year). Among the children baptized, we find
the names of John Van Alen Lyle, James Kosciosko Armstrong,
Philip Henry Knickerbocker and Cornelius E.Elmendorf. Among
the marriages we find those of John W. Pitcher, of Red Hook,
with Catharine Kip, of Rhinebeck, November 4, 1797; Anthony
Hoffman with Jannet Bostick, both of Mount Ross, September
3' 1797 ; John Radcliff, with Jane Van Ness, both of Rhinebeck,
October 24, 1798 ; Garret Cock, of Germantown, with Catharine
Benner, of Red Hook, Novembers, 1801 ; Henry G. Livingston,
Jr., of Rhinebeck, with Catharine Coopernail, of Little Nine
Partners, December 26, 1803 ; John Knickerbacker, Jr., of North
East, with Mary Benner, of Red Hook, January 8, 1804; John
Davenport, of New York, with Eliza Wheeler, of Red Hook,
February 10, 1806; Jacob Vosburg, with Hannah Shoemaker,
both of Red Hook, February 10, 1806.
130 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
ANDREW N. KITTLE.
Andrew N. Kittle came into the pastorate under a regular call
from the Old and New Red Hook churches, which was accept-
ed by him on the first day of February, 1807. These being his
first charges, he was ordained in the Lower or Old Church, on
the 26th of April, 1807, by Dominies Broadhead and Vedder,
Broadhead preaching the ordination sermon. The oldest book
of records, which is all \\'e have to consult, ends 181 3. In this
period of six years he added twenty-five to the membership of
the church, baptized eighty-six children, and married sixty
couples. Among the additions to the church we find the names
of Phebe Pugsly. wife of Peter Van Alen, May 30. and Peter
Van Alen, November 30, 1807 : Annatie Moore, from the Ger-
man Church at Rhinebeck ; Garret Cock, from the German
Church at the Camp ; Abraham Kip and his wife, by certificate
from Rhinebeck Fiats ; Miss Sally Livingston, on confession ;
and Miss Nancy Corie, on certificate from the Episcopal Church
in New York. Among the children baptized we find the names
of Francis, daughter of Thomas Broadhead and Maria Curtis ;
Robert L., son of Robert L. and Margaret Livingston, with
Chancellor Robert R. Livingston and Mary Stevens, his wife, as
sponsors; Margaret Elizabeth, daughter of John Radcliff and
Jane Van Ness; Andrew N. Kittle, son of John W. Pitcher
and Catharine Kip ; Thomas, son of Jacob C. and Ganetye
Elmendorf. Among the marriages we find those of John Ben-
ner to Miss Hannah Schryver, of Rhinebeck, September 3, 1808;
Gamaliel Wheeler, to Miss Mary Panderson, both of Red Hook,
November 15, 1810; Jacob Benner to Miss Margaret Fero, both
of Rhinebeck, December 25, 1810; John Constable, of Sche-
nectady, to Miss Susan Maria Livingston, of Red Hook Land-
ing, June 9, 181 1 ; John Du Bois, merchant, of Red Hook
Landing, to Miss Gitty Broadhead, of Clermont, June 23, 181 1 ;
John Elting, Jr., to Miss Margaret Jones, both of Clermont,
March 14, 1813; Thomas Mesick, of Clavarack, to Miss Betsey
Maule, of Red Hook, August 22, 1813 ; and on the same day,
Tom and Bet, servants of General Ten Broeck.
The pastorate of Dominie Kittle extended to 1833, covering
a period of twenty-six years. The writer remembers very well
THE UFFEk RED HOOK CHURCH. I3I
listening to his farewell sermon, and recalls the emotion with
which he alluded to the fact that he had grown gray and spent
the vigor of his life in the service of the people he was address-
ing. The church at this time was paying a small salary, and we
think his reason for leaving was that it did not suffice for the
support of his family. He was living in the large brick house,
now the residence of Dr. John Losee. His wife was sister to
the Rev. Dr. John Gosman, and his father-in-law was living with
him. Corwin, in his Manual, says he was a grandson of Dominie
Fryenmoet. We remember him as a good preacher; a good-
looking, good-tempered, very intelligent, and very affable gen-
tleman " of the old school."
FREDERICK W. THOMPSON,
The Rev. Frederick W. Thompson, of New Brunswick, N. J.,
was Dominie Kittle's successor. His pastorate was a very short
one, lasting from 1834 to 1836. We have no record of his work
in the book before us. He left the chureh to go abroad as a
missionary. The beautiful and lovely woman whom many of
us remember as his wife, died at Batavia, in the island of Java,
November 16, 1839. ^^ married again, on the 9th of Novem-
ber, 1840, Cecelia Combe, a Swiss lady who was teaching a
Christian school at Batavia. She died on the. river, on a jour-
ney from Karangan to Pontianak, in December, 1844. He died,
March 3, 1848, at Berne, in Switzerland, whither he had gone
for the recovery of his health.
JACOB W. HANGEN.
The Rev. Jacob W. Hangen succeeded Mr. Thomson. He
came into the pastorate in 1838, and went out in 1840. The
German Reformed Church, of Germantown, in Columbia Coun-
ty, called the " Sanctity Church," joined the Poughkeepsie
classes of the Dutch Reformed Church on the 14th of January,
1837, while Jacob W. Hangen was serving it as pastor ; and, we
think, after this date he served it in connection with the Red
Hook church to the end of his pastorate. He died in 1843.
We have not learned where.
JOHN W. WARD.
The Rev. John W. Ward succeeded Dominie Hangen. He
132 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
served the church from 1841 to 1845. He went from Hed Hook
to Greenpoint, serving there from 1849 to 1854. He died in
1859.
JOHN G. JOHNSON.
The Rev. J. G. Johnson succeeded Dominie Ward. He
served the church from the ist of January, 1846, to July 3, 1874,
on the evening of which day his labors were terminated by his
death. He died in the fifty-seventh year of his age, the thirty-
first of his ministry, and the twenty-fourth of his Red Hook
pastorate. His remains were interred at Peekskill, in the vil-
lage cemetery. He was universally esteemed as a man and a
pastor, and the church extended its influence, and was greatly
prospered by his ministrations.
HENRY VAN SCHOONHOYEN MYERS.
The Rev. Henry V. S. Myers succeeded Dominie Johnson,
and served the church from 1871 to 1874. He went from Red
Hook to South Brooklyn. He is an eloquent and able preacher.
JOSEPH SCUDDER, M. D.
The Rev. Joseph Scudder, a doctor of medicine, and an India
missionary for a number of years, was Dominie Myers' suc-
cessor. He came into the pastorate in 1875, and was taken out
by the hand of death on the 21st of November, 1876. His re-
mains were interred in Greenwood Cemetery.
EZEKIEL CARMAN SCUDDER, M. D.
The Rev. Ezekiel Carman Scudder, also a doctor of medi-
cine, and at one time an India missionary, is Dominie Joseph
Scudder's successor, and the present efficient, intelligent, and
popular incumbent.
THE CHARACTER OF THE PEOPLE.
The pastors of the Red Hook Dutch Reformed Church
have all displayed more than an ordinary degree of intelligence
and influence, because they were always the choice of an intel-
ligent, self-reliant, and well ordered people. We think the land
of Upper Red Hook falls within a tract of three thousand acres,
assigned to Barent Van Benthuysen in the division of the Schuy-
ler patent, and was disposed of by him to his children, and those
of the families of Heermances in Kingston and Rhinebeck; and
THE UPPER RED HOOK CHURCH. 1 33
that the Dutch Church of Upper Red Hook, in its first incep-
tion, was the creation, and located on the land of some of these
Heermances, who, though now nearly extinct, were at the begin-
ning of the century very numerous, and very influential in the
town.
REAL ESTATE.
When, from whom, and on what terms the two Red Hook
Reformed Dutch Churches obtained their first grants of land
for church and cemetery lots, we have not been able to learn.
The oldest tradition in reference to the two acres comprised in
the church lot and graveyard of the old Red Church, near Ma-
dalin, is, that it was a gift from Zacharias Hoffman, about 1760.
The graveyard is still in the care of trustees, and the burial
place for families in the neighborhood. The oldest graveyard
in the town, long disused, we are told, lies on a hill back of the
Farmers' Hotel, at Tivoli.
The Upper Village Church has no deed for its first church
and cemetery lot, and there is no one living who knows from
whom, or on what terms it was obtained. In 1802 Andrew G.
Heermance and his wife gave a deed for four-tenths of an acre
for an addition to the cemetery ; and in 1822 Jacob Heermance
and his wife gave a deed for five-tenths of an acre for another
addition to the cemetery. The deed for the parsonage and lot
was given by Henry Pulver and his wife, in 1835 ; and there is
a later deed from Robert Almstead and his wife for another ad-
dition to the cemetery.
CHURCH EDIFICES.
The Old Church is of wood, and painted red ; and, if it is
not the same edifice dedicated by Dominie Fryenmoet, on the
5th of October, 1766, we have not learned when it was recon-
structed, or its place taken by another.
The new, or Upper Red Hook edifice, was in existence in
1787, and probably built in this year. It was built of stone^
quarried out of the " Styler Barrick," a rocky hill northeast of
the village. Tradition says Peter Ryfenburgh was the master
mason. There is a resolution in the book before us, passed on
the 2 1 St of September, 18 13, presenting thanks " to the Reform-
ed German Church for the use of their church this summer.
134 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
We presume the Dutch edifice in this year received repairs, or
alterations, in the progress of which it could not be used, and
an offer of their house by the German people, in the Lower
Village, was accepted. There is also a record of a meeting held
on the 22d of February, 1854, with Rev. J. G. Johnson for chair-
man, and Daniel A. Cock for secretary, at which it was resolved
to reconstruct the interior of the edifice ; and we think it was
done, at an expense of something over twelve hundred dollars.
The old stone edifice gave place, in 1871, to the present hand-
some and commodious Gothic wooden structure, erected under
the supervision of a building committee composed of Edwin
Knickerbocker, Arthur Nelson, John Losee, James R. Kerley,
William R. Moore and Peter Feroe ; Edwin Knickerbocker,
chairman ; Arthur Nelson, Treasurer. This committee con-
tracted with Milton Cramer to erect the building for thirteen
thousand one hundred dollars ; but we learn from the treasurer
that extra work brought up the cost to fully fourteen thousand
dollars. The corner-stone was laid on the 12th of September,
1871, and the house dedicated on the 15th of May, 1872. It
includes ample Sunday School rooms, on the same floor with
the audience room. Its pews are spacious and without doors ;
and there is an aspect about all its appointments which says to
the sojourner, and all the neighborhood, " come in and feel
yourselves entirely at home with us." The interior is greatly
enlivened and beautified by three memorial windows of stained
glass, all on the eastern side, and therefore all in the morning
sun. The first is to the memory of Harmanus Hoffman and his
wife, Catharina Verplank, and was a gift from their son, Philip
Verplank Hoffman, of New York City. Harmanus HofTman
was an elder of the church in 1789. A lady who attended the
district school of Red Hook with the son, says, "he was very
full of life, and very full of pranks." The second is to the
memory of Rev. J. G. Johnson, and was put up in its place by
the church. It represents a shepherd with his crook, and a lamb
lying at his feet — an appropriate design, and a beautiful win-
dow. The third is to the memor)' of Ebenezer Adams, whom
we remember as a veteran of the revolution, and was a gift to
the church from his daughter, Ruth. He was often an elder of
THE RHIXEBECK METHODIST CHURCH. 1 35
the church. He died on the 31st of January, 1846, aged ninety-
four years.
There is but a step from the door of the parsonage to the
door of the church. The adjacent cemetery is spacious and
well ordered, and crowded with slabs and monuments to the
memory of the sturdy people who founded the town, and sub-
dued the wilderness of Red Hook. The church is located in
a quiet village, is the sole occupant of a large territory, and
hence the Sabbath-home of a community of people unchafed
and unsoured by sectarian rivalries ; and who, while they have
a proper respect for themselves, entertain a good opinion of,
and are prepared for kind offices toward each other.
CHAPTER XX.
THE RHINEBECK METHODIST CHURCH.
The Methodist Church came into Rhinebeck with the Rev.
Freeborn Garrettson, about 1793. Dr. Thomas Tillottson, of
Maryland, a surgeon in the Revolutionary army, and a promin.
ent man in the politics of the state of New York after the war,
married Margaret, the second daughter of Judge Robert R.
Livingston and Margaret Beekman, and settled on an estate
purchased from the Van Ettens, on the Neck, or south end of
the patent of Arie Roosa and company, the Van Ettens being
heirs of the Roosas. The Rev. Freeborn Garrettson, also a
Marylander, and known to Dr. Tillottson at home, was invited
by the latter to pay him a visit at his Rhinebeck mansion. He
accepted the invitation, and tarried with him for several weeks,
preaching the doctrines of the Methodists to the people of the
neighborhood. In what house or in what locality, we are not
told. We are told, however, that he met Catharine Livingston,
the sister of Mrs. Tillottson, at the residence of the latter; that
a friendship grew up between them which ended in marriage in
1793 ; and that the couple took up their residence soon after, on
a portion of an estate the fee of which fell to the share of the
wife in the division of the lands of her grandfather, Henry
Beekman, between the children of his daughter and only child
Margaret, known to the past generation of the people of Rhine,
beck as Madam Livingston.
136 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
A map of the town of Rhinebeck. made in 1797, shows a
Methodist church on a hill facing the road to Milan, a short dis
tance beyond the house recently erected by Mr Edwin Knick_
erbocker. The residence of the Garrettsons was in the imme.
diate vicinity of this church, a little to the southeast, in a stone
house built in 1772 by Thomas Canner. for a man of the name
of Hagadorn. At what date this church was built, and with what
funds, there is no person or document to tell us ; that it was
there because the Garrettsons were there, there is nobody
to doubt.
In 1799 the Garrettsons exchanged this farm with the Van
Wagenens, on the patent of Arie Roosa & Co., they owning
these lands as the descendants of Gerrit Artsen, one of the part-
ners to the grant. The Van Wagenens moved into the farm
house on the Hagadorn farm, the Garrettsons retaining the
main residence while they built their mansion on the premises
acquired from the Van Wagenens. This exchange of lands
brought the Garrettsons into the immediate neighborhood of
the Tillottsons, and gave them an extended and very handsome
river-view from their residence. They moved into their new
house in October, 1799, and their estate in time received the
name of Wildercliff.
The first knowledge we get of the presence of the Metho-
dists in the village of Rhinebeck is contained in a deed from
Mrs. Janet Montgomery to Rev. Freeborn Garrettson, Robert
Sands, Simon Johnson Myers, Charles Doyl, and Daniel McCar-
ty, trustees of the Methodist Episcopal Church at Rhinebeck
Flatts, dated August the ist, 1801, for one rood and six perches
of land, bounded as follows : " Beginning at the northwest cor-
ner of a lot leased by the said Janet Montgomery to the said
Daniel McCarty, and now in the tenure and occupation of Ro-
bert Scott, and runs from thence along the bounds of said lot
north, eighty-nine degrees east, one chain and eighty-nine links
to a stake ; thence north, one degree west, one chain and fifty
links to a stake ; thence south eighty-nine degrees west, one
chain and ninety-six links ; thence, with a straight line, to
the place of beginning, containing one rood and six perches of
land."
THE RHINEBECK METHODIST CHURCH. 1 37
This lot is now owned and occupied by John E. Traver in
Center street. A venerable lady, now in the 89th year of her
age, a daughter of Robert Scott, who grew from childhood to
womanhood in the immediate vicinity of this lot, remarkably
preserved in body, mind and memory for her years, informs us
that the Methodist Church on the road to Milan, three miles
east of the village, " near Tommy Larwood's," was taken down,
brought to the village and rebuilt on this lot by Daniel McCar-
ty ; and, to the best of her memory, in the year when the lot
was given. The parsonage, the residence now occupied by Mr.
Traver, she thinks, was built two or three years later. Among
the preachers whose goings to and fro brought them to Rhine-
beck, she remembers to have heard Lorenzo Dow, " Billy" Hib-
bard, Ensign, Foster and others, in this church. Daniel McCar-
ty. she says, who ran the lower grist mill, and lived in the old
stone house, and afterwards moved to the Schell place, now oc-
cupied and owned by Mr. Luther, was the most ardent, active
and influential Methodist in the town in his day, the preachers
making a home of his house when they reached the Flatts, be-
fore the parsonage was built, and he always working for the
church. Some of us remember him as a revolutionary veteran.
The lot on which the present church edifice stands was also
a gift from Mrs. Janet Montgomery. The deed was for half an
acre of ground " on the north side of the road commonly called
Ulster and Delaware Turnpike," and is a conveyance in trust
from Janet Montgomery, of Red Hook, to Mary Garrettson, of
Rhinebeck, on the express condition " that she shall not at any
time hereafter assign her right or trust to any but such persons
as maybe appointed trustees of the Rhinebeck Methodist Epis-
copal Church by the members thereof ;" and that neither she,
or her assigns, "^ shall, at any time, build on the premises more
than a house of worship, with the necessary appurtenances, for
the use of the said Methodist Episcopal Church." This deed
bears date, March the 3d, 1822. From this date on the history
of the church is contained in the records, which are very full,
and were very carefully and intelligently kept by Freeborn Gar-
rettson, Esq., Rev. Stephen Schuyler, Dr. William Cross, and
other competent clerks. The following, pertaining to the new
138 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
church and premises, is transcribed from the records, and, as
the reader will discover, is the language of Freeborn Garrett-
son, Esq. : — " At a meeting of the Methodist society on Rhine-
beck Flatts, convened at the Rev. Jesse Hunt's, January, 1822,
for the purpose of taking into consideration the expediency of
erecting a Methodist chapel at said Rhinebeck Flatts, and for the
further purpose of choosing nine trustees for the same ; Where-
upon, the Rev. Freeborn Garrettson was called to the chair,
and Freeborn Garrettson, Jr., appointed secretary. The busi-
ness of the meeting being opened, and the deed of the old
chapel at said Rhinebeck Flatts being read, proceeded to the
choice of trustees. The Rev. Jesse Hunt, being the preacher
in charge, it was accordingly his prerogative, agreeably to dis-
cipline, to nominate the same. He, therefore, nominated the
following persons, who were duly appointed, viz : Rev. Free-
born Garrettson, Robert Sands, William Cross, Sen'r, James
Raisbeck, William C. Freeman, Freeborn Garrettson, Jr., Samuel
Bell, Jeffery H. Champlin, and Nicholas Drury."
"The subject of the new church was then taken up, and it
was unanimously agreed that it was necessary to go on with its
erection, provided a suitable site could be obtained, and funds
procured. The trustees were, therefore, instructed to consider
the matter, and make their report as soon as possible ; and also
to consider of what materials the building should be composed."
"It was agreed that two persons be appointed to superin-
tend the building, and for said two persons to be under the di-
rection of the trustees. Freeborn Garrettson, Jr., and William
C. Freeman were accordingly appointed, and were instructed to
present their account for services to the trustees, to be audited
b}^ them."
" It was agreed that the chairman appoint persons to go
around to solicit subscriptions to the building. The Rev. Jesse
Hunt, Freeborn Garrettson. Jr., and William C. Freeman, were
also appointed treasurers. Adjourned to meet again on the
23d of January, 1822."
At this adjourned meeting the Rev. Freeborn Garrettson
was appointed president of the board of trustees, and Freeborn
Garrettson, Jr., chosen secretary; when the president stated
THE RHINEBECK METHODIST CHURCH. 1 39
that Mrs. Janet Montgomery had presented the society with
half an acre of ground, in a conspicuous place in the village
fronting on the turnpike ; and named other successes in the way
of subscriptions. It was then unanimously agreed that the
church be built, and built of stone, of the size of forty-five feet
by fifty-five, from outside to outside ; and that the Rev. Free-
born Garrettson, Rev. Jesse Hunt, Freeborn Garrettson, Jr.,
William E. Freeman, and Jeffery H. Champlin be a committee
to manage the building, and that Freeborn Garrettson, Jr., be
considered as the centre of that committee, and the general su-
perintendent thereof. "After agreeing that the building be
forwarded with as much expedition as possible, this meeting
adjourned."
The corner-stone of the building was laid by the Rev. Free-
born Garrettson, on the 1st day of May, 1822, and the building
was completed on the 6th day of October following. Freeborn
Garrettson, Jr., the superintendent of the building, records that
the thanks of the society are due to Thomas Sanford, the mas-
ter mason, and Henry C. Teal, the master carpenter, for dili-
gence and skill in the execution of their tasks ; that no accident
happened about the building ; that not a drop of spirituous li-
quors was drank during its erection ; that the carpenters, ma-
sons and laborers all acquitted themselves well ; that all were
peaceable, industrious and respectful; that never was a build-
ing raised with more harmony and good feeling. He gives
special credit to John King, a colored man, for diligence and
industry ; and thanks the neighbors for the willingness with
which they assisted with their teams in collecting the materials
for the building. And then he mentions what he calls "a re-
markable circumstance," as follows:
A well was dug for " the accommodation of the building,"
for the first step. " It afforded a full supply of water for all
the purposes of making mortar, and every other use necessary
as long as it was wanted ; and not many days after we ceased
to use it, the well became dry.' * Another circumstance in the
*There is a'tradition among the old people that the Rev. Freeborn Garrettson
locked his well-curb against the workmen in the Fox Hollow factory, and the chil-
dren from the neighboring school, who were in the habit of resorting to the well for
water, and was astonished to discover, soon after, that the well refused to hold water
I40 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
digging of the well is also deemed worthy of note. ** After ex-
cavating the earth a short distance, we presently discovered an
excellent vein of loam ; and in going a little deeper fonnd
another of sand, and in still going a little deeper found another
of gravel, which answered alJ the purposes for erecting the
stone building, in making mortar for the wall, for the plaster-
ing, and for the rough casting of the building, upon the outside.
This was fortunate for us, which saved us much trouble and ex-
pense."
The cost of the building was $3,559.88. The subscriptions
amounted to $3,234, leaving the committee in debt, $325.88.
This was assumed, and finally presented to the church, by the
Rev. Freeborn Garrettson.
There were one hundred and twenty-six subscriptions to
the building fund. Mrs. Catherine Garrettson gave $800 ; Mrs.
Catherine Suckley, $500; Miss Mary Garrettson, $100; Rev.
Freeborn Garrettson, in money, timber and labor, $300 ; Free-
born Garrettson, Jr., superintendent, $300; Mr. George Suck-
ley, Mr. John L. Suckley, Mr. Rutsen Suckley, Mr. Thomas
H. Suckley, Miss Mary Suckley, Miss Sarah S. Suckley, Miss
Catherine Suckley, $100 ; Colonel Henry B. Livingston gave
480 loads of stone in the quarry; Edward P. Livingston
gave $50; Robert L. Livingston, $50; Thomas Tillottson,
$40; Mrs. Thompson, $50; Mrs. General Armstrong, $20;
Mrs. Margaret Astor, $20; Coert DuRois, $25. Everybody in
the village who could afford it gave something, from twenty
dollars down to one dollar each. Mr. Zebulon Hibbard gave
the inscription stones ; Mr. Brewer, of Kingston, the keystones
to the doors and windows in front of the building; Mr. Rutsen
Suckley gave two of the Birmingham lamps ; Miss Catherine G.
Suckley presented the sacramental cups ; William Cross and
Robert Dixon, gave the mahogany table within the altar ; and
John E. Brooks made and presented the book board.
. At a meeting of the trustees, held on the 8th of December,
1823, at the parsonage house, then occupied by James Young,
'the ruling preacher in charge on the circuit," James Raisbeck
for his own family. Whether he thereupon removed the lock and recovered the
water tradition has not informed us.
THE RHINEBECK METHODIST CHURCH. 14I
and John E. Brooks were appointed a committee to take charge
of the " new cemetery." It was agreed that all such as belong
to the Methodist Church at Rhinebeck and its vicinity, and all
such as are in the habit of attending worship in Mission Chapel,
and contributing to the support of the gospel in said chapel,
shall be privileged to inter their dead in said burying ground "
under the direction of the committee.
The Rev. Freeborn Garrettson entered the ministry in 1775
and, we are told, was appointed presiding elder over the district
extending from Long Island to Lake Champlain, in 1788. In
1827, while at the house of a friend in the city of New York,
he was taken suddenly ill and soon died, in the 76th year of his
age and the 52d of his ministry.
The church was incorporated with Freeborn Garrettson,
the nephew, William Cross, Nicholas Drury, Jeffery H. Champ-
lin, and William Mink, as trustees, on the 2d day of June, 1829,
and the certificate thereof recorded on the Iith day of the same
month, in Liber No. i of records of church incorporations, on
pages 97 and 98, Clerk's Office, Dutchess County.
A deed for one rood and thirteen perches of land for a par-
sonage lot in the rear of the church lot, was presented to the
church by Hon. Edward Livingston, on the 12th of November,
1829, (all the village lands having come into his possession by
the will of his sister, Janet Montgomery, which was admitted
to probate and recorded by James Hooker, Surrogate of Dutch-
ess County, on the 28th of April, 1827.) A new parsonage was
built on this lot in the same year, at a cost of $1,305.79. The
subscriptions to meet this expenditure amounted to $664. Of
this amount Mrs. Catherine Garrettson gave $300; Freeborn
Garrettson, $75 ; William B. Piatt, $15 ; Rev. George W. Be-
thune, $10; David Rowley, $10; Cornelia Bayard, of Philadel-
phia, $10; and fifty-five others in proportion to their means,
and their interest in the cause of the Methodist Church.
On the 30th of June, 1832, Mrs. Catherine Garrettson pre-
sented the church with half an acre of ground for the burying
ground south of the village, on the conditions that the church
surround it with a good fence, and permit no more interments
in the ground attached to the church. The deed for this ground
bears date, March the 27th, 1835.
142 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
A deed for half an acre of ground adjoining the parsonage
lot was presented to the church by Mrs. Louisa Livingston,
widow of the Hon. Edward Livingston, on the 7th of Novem-
ber, 1838. (She came into the possession of all the worldly es-
tate of her husband by his will, dated at Paris, on the 7th day
of March, 1835, and admitted to probate by James Hooker,
surrogate of Dutchess County, on the 23d day of July, 1836.)
In 1834 the church found itself in debt in the sum of $954,
and appealed to the court for leave to sell the old parsonage
and lot, the proceeds to be applied in payment thereof. An
order permitting the sale was obtained by John Armstrong, Esq.,
on the 1st of October, 1834, a strip on the north of the lot,
thirty-two feet front and rear, on which there was a " new school
house," to be reserved. The sale was not immediately effected,
and the premises continued in the possession of Harvey Sey-
mour as tenant. On the 12th of November, 1838, it was re-
solved to sell the premises, with the reservation on the north,
to Robt. T. Seymour, for $600. Failing in this, it was rented
to Mr. Seymour for another year, at $50. and in 1839 sold to
Rev. Benjamin Griffin, presiding elder of the Methodist church
at the time for the Rhinebeck district, at 1^500, he to pay the
expense of a second application to the court, and fence the lot
reserved for the school house. Our recollection is that a classi-
cal school — the beginning of the Rhinebeck Academy — was
taught in this house by the Rev. Samuel Bell, a Methodist cler-
gyman from the east.
THE RHINEBECK ACADEMY.
The credit for building up the Academ)' in Rhinebeck is
certainly due to the Methodists, and very largely to Dominie
Griffin. Bell, Marcy, Park, Comfort, Powers, Stocking and
Schuyler, were all Methodists. When the Rev. Charles A.
Smith was the Lutheran preacher in the village, he brought a
Lutheran from Gettysburg to take charge of it, in the person of
the Rev. Henry Schmidt, an accomplished scholar and gentle-
man, who, however, soon left the post.
The school house on the old church lot was the property
of Miss Mary Garrettson, probably because it had been built
with her money. Superseded by the academy, in the building
THE RHINEHECK METHODIST CHURCH. 143
of which she had taken an active interest, she offered it to the
Methodist church, with a lot fifteen feet wide on the west of
the Methodist church lot, in 1842, to be fitted up exclusively
for religious meetings and purposes. The removal was effected
and the old lot sold to Rev. Benjamin Grififin also, then of New
York, for five dollars per foot, in 1843.
In 1848 the church found it.self in debt in the sum of $1,005,
and on the ist of May in this year, Mi. Rutsen Suckley placed
$1,000 at the disposal of the trustees wi-th which to pay it, and
bound them not to run in debt again. On the 12th of March,
in this same year. Miss Mary Garrettson transferred her trust of
.the church lot to the trustees of the church, having held it in
her hands as sole trustee for the period of twenty-six years.
On the 14th of June, 1849, Mrs. Catharine Garrettson, widow
of the Rev. Freeborn Garrettson, died very suddenly, at Mont-
gomery Place, the residence of her sister-in-law, Louisa, the
widow of Hon. Edward Livingston. Born on the 13th of July,
1752, she was in the forty-first year of her age when she mar-
ried, and the ninety-seventh when she died. She was calm
and dignified in her manner, tall and stately in her person.
Kindly disposed toward all who met her, she was as generally
loved as she was respected.
In 1 85 I the portico and steeple were added to the church
edifice, at an expense of $1,100. A bell being desired for the
steeple, the Rev. L. W, Peck, the minister in charge, was au-
thorized to write to Mr. Suckley for leave to run in debt $200
in order that they might procure one. He declined the request
but sent a subscription of $50 toward the amount needed. The
record says they thanked him for his liberal subscription, and
examined their financial condition, " which they found so favor-
able that the bell was immediately purchased."
In 1853 the church received a donation of five acres of land
in the Bucobush (Beech-woods) from Miss Margaret B. Livings-
ton, which was sold for $70 per acre, and the proceeds applied
to the payment of church debts.
In 1854 the church found itself in ciebt again, and obtained
an order from the court to sell the lot purchased from Gilbert
Akerly, on the ist of May, 1845, the proceeds to be applied to
144 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
the payment thereof. It was thus sold on the 5th of December,
1854, to Miss Mary Garrettson for $400.
On the 19th of February, 1856, Miss Mary Garrettson made
a gift to the church of five acres of land for an addition to the
cemetery ; and it was resolved that the cemetery thus enlarged
should be styled the " Rhinebeck Cemetery of the Methodist
Episcopal Church," On the 27th of August, 1853, she had
given half an acre of ground for a cemetery for the people of
color, access to which was had over the cemetery of the Re-
formed Church ground. By the addition of these five acres this
cemetery is now within the limits of the Methodist ground, and
accessible therefrom.
In 1863 the church edifice was greatly enlarged, internally
reconstructed, and greatly improved, at an expense of six to
seven thousand dollars. It is now a very commodious and
tasteful structure.
In 1868 the church received a gift from Miss Mary Garrett-
son of the Akerly lot, and built the present handsome and com-
modious Sunday school and lecture room upon it.
In 1 87 1 the parsonage was reconstructed and enlarged, and
is now, with its handsome situation, a very desirable residence.
With its enlarged premises and improved buildings the
Methodist church property is now one of the most attractive
features in our beautiful village ; and the picture of Rhinebeck,
which omitted it, would not do us justice.*
*In a book entitled " Historical Recollections of the state of New York," pub-
lished in 1842, we get pictures of prominent parts of inland cities and villajjes. In
Dutchess County we have fine views of Matteawan and other places in Fishkill ; and
of Poughkeepsie we have views, in and about the city, that do justice to the place.
Of Rhinebeck we get what the author calls an " Eastern View of the Methodist
Church and the academy, in the central part of the village of Rhinebeck." Now,
every child in our village at that time knew that this was not the " central part of
the village of Rhinebeck." The Methodist church was a stone and substantial, but
a small and a very plain building. It had not the pillars in front, or the addition in
the rear which give it its present respectable appearance ; and the academy was an
insignificant affair compared with what it is now in the stately structure of the De
Garmo Institute. The view and the history are in no sense an adequate advertise-
ment of our old and beautiful Rhinebeck Flatts. The view should have been from
the south, and included the old Beekman mill, and the old Dutch Reformed Church,
a substantial brick and stone building, a handsome structure, and twice as large as
the Methodist edifice. These two buildings were the nucleus of the village ; and at
the date of this history the centre of the village was at the crossing of Market and
Montgomery streets, where it is now, and will always remain. And the history
ought to have been of the old church, and of the old Kingston preachers from
whom it received its life ; and of Mrs. Montgomery, who owned all our real estate
before we became a village, and did all she could to help us to become one.
THE RHINEBECK METHODIST CHURCH. 145
Mr Rutsen Suckley, whose liberality and devotion so often
came to the relief of the trustees when they found themselves
in need, and who was held in very high esteem by the people
of Rhinebeck generally, died in the city of New York on the
22d, and was buried from this church on the 24th of June, 1875.
A funeral discourse, bearing deserved testimony to his worth,
was preached by the Rev. Dr. Holdich, of the Methodist church.
The large and beautiful organ was put into the gallery in the
fall of 1876, at an expense of $2,500, and was a memorial gift
from Mr. Thomas Suckley for his brother Rutsen.
Miss Mary R. Garrettson, the daughter and only child of
the Rev. Freeborn Garrettson and his wife, Catherine Living,
ston, died March 6, 1879. Born on the 8th of September, 1794,
she was in the 85th year of her age. She had been a constant
and generous supporter of her church, and the large audience
at her funeral obsequies attested that her loss was deeply and
widely felt by her people.
The position, character, piety and wealth of Mrs. Catharine
Garrettson gave great prominence in the denomination to the
Rhinebeck Methodist church. If she had not had her residence
among us, we should probably never have heard sermons in a
Rhinebeck pulpit from President Nott, of Union College ; Dr.
Kirk, of Boston ; from Maffet, Summerfield, Derbin, Olin, Hol-
dich, Pitman and Foss of the Methodist Church ; nor found
among the ministers stationed here the names of Remington*,
Craigh, Mercien, Sing, Kettell, Hunt, Otheman, Wheatly and
narrower. While we have found the church remarkable for the
frequency with which it found itself in debt, we have found it
equally remarkable for the facility and promptitude with which
it found the way out of it. We presume that to-day it finds
itself competent to open its doors and its pews to the people at
quite as moderate a price as any other in the village.
*Stephen Remington became a Baptist shortly after he left Rhinebeck. He
died in Lowell, Massachusetts, a few years since, and, we are told, had a record of
three thousand baptisms as a Baptist minister.
146 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
CHAPTER XXI.
THE RHINEBECK BAPTIST CHURCH.
The Baptist church was brought into Rhinebeck by Robert
Scott. He was an Englishman. His family, we are told, were
Episcopalians, and he was brought up in the faith of the Eng-
lish church. He received a classical education, but learned the
trade of a cabinet maker in his native country. He became a
Wesleyan at an early age, and traveled about preaching as a
Wesleyan minister in his own country. In the progress of his
ministrations he became a Baptist in his opinions, joined the
Baptist communion, and settled down to his trade. He
came to America with his family, in company with the Vassars
and Slaters, and arrived in the city of New York on the 6th o^
October, 1794. Here he went to work for Gen. Morgan Lewis,
in Leonard street, as a carpenter. On the persuasion of Mad-
am (Margaret Beekman) Livingston, he moved to Rhinebeck
with his family, and opened a school in 1796. Mr. Slater had
bought Daniel McCarty's lease of the lot and house in South
street, known as the " Scott premises," and opened a store.
After a little while Robert Scott bought him out, lot, house
and store, and continued the business of a merchant for four
years, when he gave it up, and opened a boarding school, and
followed the occupation of a teacher and surveyor for the bal-
ance of his life. He had for pupils James Stokes, who was a
member of the firm ot Phelps, Dodge & Co., and is now of the
firm of Phelps, Stokes & Co., bankers. Henry Stokes, presi-
dent of the Manhattan Life Insurance Company, was a pupil
in his school nine years. B. Stokes, who was killed by the fall-
ing of the store of Phelps, Dodge & Co., in Cliff Street ; and
several of the Colgate family, among them Robert Colgate,
president of the Atlantic White Lead Works, were pupils in
his school. Thomas Stokes, of whom a memorial book has
been published, was one of his last pupils. " His ministerial
life," we are told, " never ceased from eighteen years of age ;
where a door was opened there he went, whether a court house,
dwelling house, or barn." And we are informed he published
THE RHINEBECK BAPTIST CHURCH. I47
the following works: " Antidote to Deism ;" " Chronology from
the Creation to the year 18 10;" "A Treatise on Our Blessed
Lord's Return to this Earth ;" and last, " His Own Funeral
Sermon."
Having said this much by way of introduction, we will let
the record, made by Father Scott himself, tell us of the begin-
ning of the Baptist Church in Rhinebeck.
"This certifieth that on the Lord's day, June 2, 1821,
Elder Freeman Hopkins preached at Rhinebeck Flatts, and af-
ter examination upon their profession of faith in the Lord
Jesus Christ, baptized the following persons : John Reed, Wil-
liam Styles, Calvin O'Harra, Wadsworth Brooks, Jacob Ded-
rick, Elizabeth Thompson, Ann Logan, Catharine Thompson,
Elizabeth Ann Thompson, and Caty Myers ; and that the said
persons, with Robert Scott, James Canfield, Ann Cook, Eliza-
beth Scott, Mary Scott, Jane Scott, James Styles, Jr., and
Sarah Styles, agreed to enter into a covenant to walk in fellow-
ship as a church of the Lord Jesus Christ."
Letters were, at the request of these people, sent to the
churches in North East and Sandisfield, requesting them to send
delegates to sit in council with them on Wednesday, July 4,
1 82 1. These churches sent their delegates, and on the evening
of the day appointed, a council was formed, the delegates pres-
ent being as follows : From the church in North East, Elders
Freeman Hopkins and Buttolph ; brethren, Filo M. Winchell
and Nicholas Vasburg. From the church in Sandisfield, Elder,
Jesse Hartwell ; brethren, Jonathan Smith, Sylvester Doud and
Asahel Doud. These delegates, with the brethren dwelling in
Rhinebeck, constituted the council. Elder Jesse Hartwell was
chosen moderator, and Elder John Hopkins, clerk ; " when the
moderator, in behalf of the council, extended to the people of
the Rhinebeck organization the right hand of fellowship as a
sister church." And thus the Rhinebeck Baptist Church came
into being on the 4th of July, 1821.
Having heard Robert Scott on his experience and call to
the work of the ministry, and on his views of doctrine, at the
request of the church the council voted to ordain him. Elder
Jesse Hartwell was selected to preach the sermon ; Elder John
148 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
Buttolph to make the consecrating prayer; Elders Hopkins,
Buttolph and Hartwell to lay on hands ; Elder Hartwell to
give the charge ; Elder Buttolph to give the right hand of fel_
lowship; and Elder Hopkins to make the concluding prayer.
At ten o'clock on the morning of the next day the church met
and carried out this programme, in the presence of the people.
And thus Robert Scott, at the age of sixty years, was ordained
to the work of the Gospel ministry, and set over the infant Bap-
tist Church of Rhinebeck as a pastor. There was no Baptist
house of worship, and these services were conducted at the
house of Elder Scott.
The book of records before us sets forth quite elaborately
the creed to which these people subscribed on entering
this church. It sets forth that it is the duty of baptized be-
lievers to unite together in fellowship, to walk in the command-
ments and ordinances of the Lord ; and that where this is done
there is a Christian church, competent to elect its own officers,
and call upon them to do their duty ; that the Holy Scriptures
are a sufficient, and the only rule of faith and practice ; that bap-
tism is the immersion of the whole body in water, that it may
represent a burial and resurrection, and that nothing else is
baptism ; and that " it is the duty of believers to break bread
together often;" and in 1831 the church resolved to do this
'* every Lord's day ;" and it was so done for the space, we think,
of ten years thereafter.
At a church meeting held on the 29th of July, 1821, the
the record says : " Brethren Stokes and Colgate, of York, were
with us." At the monthly meeting held September 30, 1821,
it was asked whether the church would proceed to ordain dea-
cons ; but, upon consideration, it was concluded, that, as in the
primitive church none were appointed until needed, we need
not do it until they are wanted."
The church at this early day had no local habitation. It
assembled sometimes in one place and sometimes in another ;
and sometimes in Kingston. It met in Kingston on the i6th
of June, 1822, and again on the 8th of September, when Ann
Voorhis and Eliza Showers were baptized in the Rondout
Creek ; and the day was concluded by public worship in the
THE RHINEBECK BAPTIST CHUR.CH. I49
Court house. On the 23d of February and the 31st of August,
1823, the church met at Kingston again. On the 30th of June,
1825, James Canfield was set apart for the ofifice of deacon by
the imposition of hands. At a meeting held on the 28th of
December 1823, it was made known that Janet Montgomery
had given a lot of land to the Baptist chujch, and James Can-
field and Robert Scott were appointed a committee to solicit
assistance, and oversee the building of a " small, convenient
house for the use of the church for public worship." At a
meeting held on the 31st of October, 1824, it was recorded that
the building of a house for public worship had commenced ;
that it had been inclosed and covered ; that it was 30 feet wide.
34 feet long, and 18 feet high from the ground. At a meeting
held on the 29th of May, 1825, it was agreed to defer the next
meeting " until the first Lord's day in July, as it was expected the
meeting house would be done by that time." The house being
ready, public worship was held therein for the first time on the
3d of July, 1825. The record is that " Brother Scott preached
at ten and broke bread ; that Brother Babcock preached at two,
and after he had preached, bread was again broken." On No-
vember 26, 1825, the record says, "as there was no prospect of
getting stoves for the meeting house this fall, it was agreed to
hold our meetings in the school house during the winter."
On the 20th of August, 1826, the church met at Kingston again;
and on the 1st of October, 1827, James J. and Robert Styles,
from Kingston, and Eliza Styles were baptized in Rhinebeck,
and received into church fellowship ; and on the 28th of Octo-
ber, 1827, William J. Styles was ordained a deacon by the im-
position of hands, to assist Deacon Canfield. On August 24,
1828, the record says, "Brother Thompson from New York, for-
merly pastor of the Old General Baptist Church in the city of
Norwich, in England, has visited us, and preached amongst us
with universal approbation."
At the yearly meeting on the 4th of July, 1830, the record
says, " since the constituting of the church, nine years ago, for-
ty-two have been baptized, two have died, five have been exclu-
ded, three dismissed to join other churches, and three moved
to a distance from us, but had no dismission, so that there are
I50 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
left " thirty-six members. Of this number ten were Styleses,
as follows; James Styles, Sr., James Styles, Jr., William J.
Styles, deacon ; James J. Styles, Robert Styles, Sarah Styles,
Sarah Ann Styles, Jane Styles, Eliza W. Styles, Julia Styles.
On the 15th of August, 1831, Deacon James Canfield died,
and on the 26th of May, 1831, James Styles, Jr., of Kingston,
was appointed trustee in his place ; and on the 12th of May,
1832, George Snyder was appointed a deacon in his place.
In June, 1833, innovations were distracting the church,
and Rev. Robert Scott records an address to the brethren, from
which we extract the opening paragraph as follows : " To the
church of baptized believers at Rhinebeck Flatts : Brethren, I
have for a long time past perceived that I should in the end be
obliged to bear testimony against the innovations introduced
amongst us, and thereby, perhaps, sacrifice the friendship of
some, if not of you all ; or else, for peace sake, sacrifice the
truth." He died on the 24th of September, 1834, in the seven-
ty-fourth year of his age.
At the death of Father Scott, in 1834, the innovators
against whom he had so earnestly protested, obtained full con-
trol of the church. Our recollection is that about 1840 it was
generally understood that the people who constituted the
Rhinebeck Baptist Society had become Campbellites and called
themselves " Disciples." The book of records before us says
that on the 28th of September, 1835, it was unanimously
agreed that John Black should be an elder and a bishop among
them.
At a meeting held at Sister Scott's, on the 15th of August^
1842, Elder Isaac Bevan, a Regular Baptist minister, came
into view for the first time. An election of trustees proposed
was, on his motion, postponed for want of legal notice. Due
legal notice having been given, on the 8th of October, 1842,
John Reed, George Snyder and Walter Sitzer were duly elect-
ed trustees, to serve until the 4th of July, 1843; ^"d it was
agreed that from henceforth there should be a meeting of the
church held on the last Friday of every month. At the next
meeting Rev. Isaac Bevan, his wife, Mary, and her sister, Han-
nah Lewis, were admitted to membership in the church, and
THE RHINEBECK BAPTIST CHURCH. 151
by a unanimous vote Dominie Bevan was chosen to preside
over its meetings until the end of the year, with John Reed,
who, it seems, was the church's presiding elder by a previous
vote. According to our recollection, the work was soon after
left wholly in Dominie Bevan 's hands. He was an earnest, in-
defatigable worker, and it soon became widely known that there
was a Baptist church in Rhinebeck, with a strong and trust-
worthy man at its head. At a meeting held on the 30th of
August, 1844, he asked the church to vote whether they would
join the Dutchess County Association. The vote was taken,
and resulted in a tie. But the strength of the Regulars, thus
evinced, disheartened the Disciples, and a number of them
left the church, and thus gave the vote to the Regulars at
the next meeting. At a meeting held on the 5th of January,
1846, it was decided by the church that they would " remain "
in the association ; that they adopted the creed in the church
book, recorded by Robert Scott ; and that they would, in the
future, break bread on the first Lord's day in every month only.
And this attitude of the church on these questions is its posi-
tion to-day, except that it is now in the Hudson River Central,
instead of the Dutchess County Association.
Rev. Isaac Bevan continued in the pastorate until Janua-
ry, 1848. He added twenty members to the church by bap-
tism, and built up the Baptist Church at Tivoli, in Red Hook,
at the same time.
Terry Bradley, from Wilmington, in the State of Delaware,
was Isaac Bevan's successor. He came to Rhinebeck from the
University at Hamilton, and was ordained to the w^ork of
the ministry here, on the 15th of June, 1849, by a council
of which Dr. William R. Williams, of New York, was moder-
ator, and Thomas Reed, clerk. He lost his health, and resigned
his call on the 7th of April, 1850.
Dr. James Lillie, having become a Baptist, and entering
the service of the American Bible Union as a translator, took
up his residence in Rhinebeck. He joined the church here on
the 19th of June, 1852, his wife joining at the same time. He
served it as pastor for a short time, and gave his hearers the
benefit of his studies of the Hebrew and Greek texts of the
152 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
Scriptures. His last sermon, on the meaning of the word " hell "
in the Old and New Testaments, was preached to a crowded
house in the Dutch Reformed Church, on invitation of the
pastor.
Rev. Samuel W. Culver succeeded Dr. Lillie, coming into
the pastorate in 1854, and going out on the 1st of January,
1857. The church received the recess, new seats, new windows,
and the corniced and paneled ceiling during his pastorate, the
expense being mainly borne by the Hon. William Kelly, who
was a member of the building committee.
Rev. M. R. Fory, for a number of years the conductor of
a classical school in North Carolina, and at the North on ac-
count of the extreme suspicion entertained by Southern men of
Northern teachers, at this time, preached in this church for
several months during the year 1858, and delivered an illustra-
ted and very interesting course of lectures on Astronomy in the
church during the winter of this year.
William I. Gill came to Rhinebeck from the University at
Rochester. He was ordained here on the 2d of September,
1858, by a council of which Dr. John C. Harrison, of Kingston,
was moderator, and W. Sherwood, clerk. He came on the 15th
of August, 1858, and left on the 15th of October, 1859.
After this date the book contains no records for several
years, except the yearly election of a trustee. We, however,
remember that in these years the church was ably supplied at
different periods by the Rev. J. N. Smith, a missionary of the
Hudson River Central Association, and Messrs. Harriman and
Coit, from the Rochester University. The Baptistry and dress-
ing rooms were built in 1867, under the direction and at the
expense of the Hon. William Kelly.
Rev. A. M. Prentice, a student in the Seminary at Hamil-
ton, was called to the pastorate, and ordained by a council con-
vened in the church on the 9th of September, 1 869, of which Rev.
W. H. Wines, of Poughkeepsie, was moderator, and H.C. Long-
year, of Saugerties, clerk. The council was a noted one for the
prominence and ability of many of the preachers present. The
ordaining prayer was delivered by the Rev. James Cooper, of
Rondoui ; charge to the candidate by Rev. George W. Eaton,
rilE RHINEBECK BAPTIST CHURCH. 1 53
D. D., LL. D., president of the Hamilton Seminary ; hand of
fellowship by Rev. W. H. Wines; charge to the church by Z.
Grenell, Jr., of Kingston. Dominie Prentice served the church
until the 1st of January, 1874, when he took the pastorate of
the Baptist Church at Brockport, N. Y. He baptized twenty-
nine persons, and added thirty-five to the membership of the
church.
Benjamin Franklin Leipsner succeeded Dominie Prentice.
He preached his first sermon on the 26th of July. 1874, and his
last on the 13th of June, 1875. He was a graduate of the col-
lege at Hamilton, but did not enter the seminary. He was or-
dained at Newburgh, on the 4th of November, 1874. He added
eighteen to the membership of the church by baptism.
Rev. George W. Barnes was Mr. Leipsner's successor. ITe
commenced his pastorate on the iith of October, 1875, and
ended it on the ist of May, 1880. He added fourteen to the
church by baptism.
When we say that Dr. Richard Fuller, of Baltimore, Dr.
William R. Williams, of New York, Dr. Martin B. Anderson,
president of the University of Rochester, and Dr. Kendrick,
professor of Greek in the same, have preached from the pulpit
of this little church, it will not be doubted that those who wor-
ship there have heard as good sermons as were ever preached
in the village of Rhinebeck.
THE CHURCH LOT.
The original church lot was fifty-one feet wide and one
hundred and eighty deep. It was a gift from Mrs. Janet Mont-
gomery, in 1823. The deed for it was given after her death,
by Edward Livingston, her brother and heir, on the 25th day
of July, 1829, in fulfilment of her intentions. It was given to
Scott, Reed and Canfield, and their successors in ofifice, as trus-
tees, forever. In 1869, at the widening of Livingston street,
the Hon. William Kelly purchased what was left of the corner
lots, and added it, a gift, to the church lot. It was thus in-
creased to eighty-nine feet front, and made a corner lot. At
the corner of Montgomery and Livingston streets, it is the most
eligibly situated church lot in the village ; and the Baptist peo-
ple here are looking forward to the time when they will have
154 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
a house worthy of their lot. They are out of debt, their seats
are free, and the minister's salary is promptly paid.
CHAPTER XXII.
THE VILLAGE LUTHERAN CHURCH.
The Third Evangelical Lutheran Church of Rhinebeck came
into being so recently and so naturally, that there is very little
in its history that will be new or interesting to our readers. It
was founded by the Rev. Charles A. Smith, who came into
Rhinebeck the successor of the Rev. Augustus T. Geissenhainer
in the pastorate of the Wurtemburg Lutheran Church. This
church had no parsonage at this date, and, as his predecessors,
William J. Eyer and Augustus T. Geissenhainer, had done be-
fore him, he took up hes residence in the village of Rhinebeck,
four miles from the Wurtemburg house of worship. His first
residence here was in the house in Livingston street now owned
and occupied by the Widow Quick. He preached in the Wur-
temburgh church in the morning, and in the Baptist Church in
the village in the evening. An intelligent and attractive preach,
er, this church soon became too small for his audiences. Many
of his hearers were village people belonging to different churches
and no churches ; but the large majority were Lutherans, and
many of these were from the country, and manifested a prefer-
ence for a village Lutheran Church. And out of these facts arose
the effort which resulted in the organization of the Third Evan-
gelical Lutheran Church, and the erection of their house of
worship in our village.
This house was built in the summer of 1842 by a building
committee of which the Rev. Charles A. Smith and John Ben-
ner were the working members. The lot on which it stands
was the gift of John T. Schryver, who came in possession of
the lands on Livingston street as a member of the Rhinebeck
Improvement Company, who had bought of the Hon. Edward
Livingston all the lands on the Flatts of which he had become
the owner as the heir of his sister, Janet Montgomery. The
house was built at the head of and in the track of Centre street,
because Mr. Schryver would give the land just there and no
where else.
THE VILLAGE LUTHERAN CHURCH. 1 55
The house was built at a cost of five thousand five hundred
dollars, and when completed, was, by common consent, the
handsomest church edifice, in its interior finish and style, in the
town. The pulpit, especially, was not only a new thing with us,
but a very chaste and elegant thing of its kind ; and it sealed
the doom of all the old pulpits in the town. The first to be in-
spired with the spirit of improvement by it, was our venerable
Dutch Reformed Church. In a very few years after, its staid
and steady and very respectable membership resolved to recon-
struct the interior of their house. They built a recess and pul-
pit after the Lutheran model, and as nearly like it as possible,
without being exactly the same.
The Bronson house in Livingston street was built by Lewis
Marquet for the Lutheran parsonage. The joiner work in this,
was done by James Latson, an ingenious young Rhmebeck car-
penter, and the mason work by John E. Giles, the miser, and
religious impostor and beggar, who was found dead in an out-
house at Niskaunah, in 1880, with nineteen thousand dollars
in government bonds, and five thousand dollars in cash on his
person. When the house was completed, and the time had
arrived for the Lutheran people to buy, the price asked by Mr.
Marquet was higher than the church were willing to pay, and
they bought a lot of John T. Schryver, and built upon it the
house which is now the parsonage. The Marquet house was
occupied by Dominie Smith, as a tenant, for a year or two be-
fore this was accomplished.
The Rev. Charles A. Smith continued to minister to both
the Wurtemburgh and the village church until 1849, when
he took charge exclusively of the village church. We think he
continued in this until 1851, when he accepted a call to a
Lutheran church in Easton, Pennsylvania. He was followed
in the pastorate of the Rhinebeck church by the Rev. John
McKron, of Maryland, for two or three years. He was a highly
tropical, and thus to many people, an eloquent preacher. He
was succeeded by the Rev. J. W. Hasler, of whom we have no
recollection. He was followed by Rev. Jacob Heck, whom we
frequently met in Piatt & Nelson's ofifice, and whom we remem-
ber as an affable and intelligent young preacher. He was sue-
156 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
ceeded by Ernest Lubekert, who, we think, had been a music
teacher, had become a good preacher, and was pretty high-church
in his notions. He was succeeded by the Rev. William H.
Lukenbach, a very good preacher. He was succeeded by the
Rev. Reuben Hill, whom we remember as an intelligent man,
and a preacher of more than ordinary ability. He was succeed-
ed by the Rev. Henry L. Zeigenfuss, who left the Lutherans
for the Episcopalians, after a very short Lutheran pastorate,
and is now the pastor of a strong Episcopal church in the city
of Poughkeepsie. And Dominie Zeigenfuss was succeeded by
the Rev. William D. Strobel, who came into the pastorate in
1873, and is the present incumbent. In the summer of ,1876 he
had important alterations and repairs made in the interior of
the church edifice. He had the platform of the pulpit brought
down to a level with his people ; the pew doors removed, and
the pews widened ; new windows, a new desk, and a new alter-
rail constructed ; and the whole interior of the building newly
painted and handsomely frescoed. This work was done at a
large expense, under the Doctor's supervision, and does credit
to all concerned.
We have written this sketch of the Lutheran Church in our
village from memory, having had no documents to consult ; and
we have no doubt that many of our readers will recall facts that
we have forgotten, or never knew. And we shall close what
we have to say with a few matters of opinion.
When sickness or death strikes a Rhinebeck family ; when
drunkenness or any other misfortune assails it, no man among
us is more readily consulted, or more promptly and cheerfully
lends his sympathy and assistance, than Dr. Strobel. People
do not stop to ask, " Is he of our church? Is he a Free Mason,
Odd Fellow, or Son of Temperance ?" He is a Christian min-
ister, and the people recognize that he is such by divine right,
with all his credentials properly authenticated. There is not a
drunkard in the town who would not sooner be caught reeling,
or be lifted out of the gutter by any other man in the town
than by Dr. Strobel. The respect with which the masses regard
a man's opinions, and the duties of his position, is always the
measure of his influence for good in a community. When the
THE RHINKHECK F.I'ISCOPAL CHURCH. I 57
drunkard taunts him with the extravagance of his opinions,
and is not ashamed to reel, or drop into the gutter in his pres-
ence, he ought to be satisfied that his mission is not that of a
temperance lecturer, or that there is something wrong in his
tactics. It avails nothing that a man stands well with sober
people, and meets them in the lodge room of the Good Tem-
plars. He must stand well with the drunkard, and be able to
" sup with publicans and sinners," without taking harm, when
virtue will certainly pass out of him, and good be done to others.
CHAPTER XXni.
THE RHINEBECK EPISCOPAL CHURCH.
For many years prior to the establishment of the Episcopal
Church in the village of Rhinebeck, Episcopal services were held
at intervals in different places. The first Episcopal service held
here was by the Rev. Mr. Joli^nson, of Kingston, who, by court-
esy of the Methodist Church people, held service in their edifice
once a month. Subsequently, services were held in the " Baker
Building" by Rev. Sheldon Davis, Rev. Mr. Wyatt, Rev. Dr.
Sherwood, Rev. Dr. Montgomery, and Rev. J. C. Talbot, the
present bishop of Indiana. In the year 1852, Rev. Richard S.
Adams became a resident in Rhinebeck, and took the following
measures to organize an Episcopal church in this village.
ORGANIZATION OF THE CHURCH.
" Whereas, It is the desire and intention of the parties
whose names are hereunto afifixed to establish a Protestant Epis-
copal parish in the village of Rhinebeck, under pastoral care of
the Rev. Richard S. Adams, a minister of the Protestant Epis.
copal Church of the United States, and to incorporate the same
according to the statute in such case made ;
" Now, therefore, the said parties by this instrument, declare
that they attach themselves to the Protestant Episcopal Church ;
and the said Richard S. Adams, also, hereby declares that he
receives and recognizes the said parties as belonging to said
church.
158 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
" Given under our hands this eleventh day of August, in the
year one thousand eight hundred and fifty-two.
" Jas. M. Pendleton, A. Wager,
GOUVERNUER TiLLOTSON, E. PlATT,
T. GiLLENDER, JULIUS BeLLARD,
G. W. Clarke, M. E. A. Geer,
Isaac F. Van Vliet, R. S. Adams,
William Betterton.
" Notice. — The persons belonging to the Episcopal Church
congregation will meet in this room in the Baker building on
Wednesday, the i8th instant, for the purpose of incorporating
themselves, and of electing two wardens and eight vestrymen.
" R. S. Adams.
" Rhinebeck, August 8, 1852.
" Dutchess County, ss. : R. S. Adams, being duly sworn,
says that the above notice was publicly read by him in the time
of morning service, on Sunday, the 8th day of August, and on
Sunday the 15th day of August, in the year 1852, to the con-
gregation worshipping in the ' Baker building,' in the village of
Rhinebeck, according to the rites of the Protestant Episcopal
Church.
"Sworn before me this i8th (
day of August, 1852. \
R. S. Adams.
Tunis Wortman,
Justice of the Peace."
*' Rhinebeck, Dutchess County. \
August 1 8th, 1852. \
" On this day the following persons of full age, belonging to
the church and congregation, worshipping in a building called
the ' Baker building,' in the said town, in which divine service
is celebrated according to the rites of the Protestant Episcopal
Church, in the State of New York, met together at their said
place of worship, pursuant to notice duly given, in the time of
morning service, on the two Sundays previous thereto, for
the purpose of incorporating themselves as a religious society,
under the acts of the Legislature of the State of New York :
THE RHINEBECK EPISCOPAL CHURCH. 1 59
" Rev. Richard S. Adams, George W. Clarke, Isaac F. Van
Vliet, Theophilus Gillender, Julius Bellard, William Betterton,
and Marshall E. A. Geer.
" The Rev. Richard S. Adams being the minister of said
church and congregation, was called to the chair, and Theophilus
Gillender was appointed secretary. The notice of the said
meeting was then read. It was then, on motion,
" Resolved, That the persons here present do proceed to
incorporate themselves as a religious society in communion
with the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of
America, and that the said church and congregation be known
in law by the name and title of " The rector, wardens, and ves-
trymen of the Church of the Messiah in the town of Rhinebeck,
in the county of Dutchess.
" The said meeting then proceeded, on motion, to choose
two church wardens and eight vestrymen of the said church
w^hen the following persons were duly elected : Eliphalet Piatt
and Isaac F. Van Vliet, church wardens; James M. Pendleton
Gouverneur Tillottson, George W. Clark, Ambrose Wager, Julius
Bellard, Isaac F. Russell, George Lorillard, and Marshall E. A.
Geer, vestrymen. A certificate of incorporation having been
proposed, was presented, containing the above proceedings?
which was signed by the chairman of. this meeting, and by
Isaac F. Van Vliet and George W. Clark, and was witnessed by
William Betterton and John R. Rynders ; and the said William
Betterton was requested to prove the due execution of the same,
and cause it to be recorded by the county clerk.
R. S. Adams, I. F. Van Vliet,
Chairman, G. W. CLARKE,
Theos. Gillender, Secretary."
" CERTIFICATE OF INCORPORATION.
" To all whom these presents may concern :
" We, whose names and seals are affixed to this instrument,
do hereby certify that on the i8th day of August, in the year
1852, the male persons of full age, worshipping in a building
called the " Baker Building," in which divine worship is celebra-
ted, according to the rites of the Protestant Episcopal Church,
l6o RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
in the State of New York, and in pursuance of notice duly
given to the said congregation in the time of morning service
on two Sundays previous to such meeting, that the persons be-
longing to said congregation would meet at the time and place
aforesaid, for the purpose of incorporating themselves, and of
electing two church wardens and eight vestrymen ; and we fur-
ther certify that the Rev R. S. Adams, minister of said congre-
gation, presided at the said meeting ; and we further certify
that at the said meeting, Eliphalet Piatt and Isaac F. Van Vlict
were duly elected church wardens of the said congregation and
church : and James M. Pendleton, Gouverneur Tillottson,
George W. Clarke, Ambrose Wager, Julius Bellard, Isaac F.
Russell, George Lorillard, and Marshal E. A. Geer were duly
elected vestrymen. That Monday, in Easter week, was, by the
said meeting, fixed upon as the day on which the said offices of
church wardens and vestrymen should annually thereafter cease,
and their successors in office be chosen ; and that the said meet-
ing determined and declared that the said church and congre-
gation should be known in law by the name of " The rector,
church wardens, aud vestrymen of the Church of the Messiah,
in the town of Rhinebeck, in the county of Dutchess.
" In testimony whereof, we, the said Richard S. Adams, who
presided at the said flection of wardens and vestrymen, and
Isaac F. Van Vliet and George W. Clarke, who were present
and witnessed the proceedings aforesaid, have hereunto sub-
scribed our names, and affixed our seals, this i8th day of Aug-
ust, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and
fifty-two.
" Signed and sealed in ( ' R. S. ADAMS,
presence of f I. F. Van Vliet,
" Wm. Bftterton, Geo. W. Clarke.
John R. Rynders."
The above certificate was duly recorded in the clerk's office
of the county of Dutchess.
The interesting ceremony of laying the corner stone of the
Protestant Episcopal Church in this village, took place
on Thursday last (Sept. i6, 1852), in the presence of a large
assemblage. Services were held at the " Baker Building," at
THE RHINEBECK EPISC(3PAL CHURCH l6l
half past two o'clock P. M., the following named clergy being
in attendance :
" The Rector of the Parish, Rev. Reuben Sherwood, Rev.
George B. Andrews, Rev. William B. Thomas, Rev. Samuel
Buel, Rev. William Watson, Rev. Sheldon Davis, Rev. George
Waters, Rev. Jonathan Coe, of the Diocese of New York, Rev.
J. C. Talbot, of the Diocese of Kentucky."
After the usual solemnities had been performed. Rev. Mr.
Coe read a paper bearing the following inscription, a duplicate
of which is deposited in a tin box in the corner stone :
" The Parish of the Church of the Messiah was organized
August i8th, 1852. The Corner Stone was laid by the Rev.
Reuben Sherwood, D. D., rector of St. James' Church, Hyde
Park, on Thursday, September i6th, 1852. Rev. Richard S.
Adams, Rector."
"Eliphalet Piatt, M. D., Isaac F. Van Vliet, M. D.,
wardens. "
" James M. Pendleton, Gouverneur Tillottson, George W.
Clarke, Ambrose Wager, Julius Bellard, Isaac F. Russell, George
Lorrillard, M. D., Marshal E. A. Geer, vestrymen."
There are likewise deposited in the stone the names of the
village trustees, the names of the building committee, Theophi-
lus Gillender and Gouverneur Tillottson, the name of the donor
of the lot of ground (Rut.^en Suckley, Esq.), on which the
edifice is to stand, the names of the master carpenter and
mason ; also a Bible and a prayerbook, a church almanac, a num-
ber of the Churchman, a number of the Gospel Messenger, a
number of the Rhinebeck Mechanic and Gazette, and a number
of the Rhinebeck Gazette and Dutchess County Advertiser.
The corner stone was then laid by Rev. Reuben Sherwood,
D. D., of St. James' Church, Hyde Park ; after which an address
was delivered by the rector of the parish, and listened to with
marked attention by the large audience.
The church was consecrated on the sixth day of October^
1855, by the Right Rev. Horatio Potter, D. D., provisional
bishop 01 the diocese.
The Rev. Richard S. Adams was the first pastor. He was
elected on the i8th of December, 1852, and resigned on the
l62 RHINEBECK CHURCH HISTORY.
24th of December, 1853, thus serving the church as pastor for
one year.
The Rev. George Herbert Walsh succeeded Mr. Adams.
He was elected on the ist of June, 1854, and resigned on the
i8th of June, 1866, having thus served the church for twelve
years. He was highly esteemed as a member of our commnnity,
and while he retained the esteem and affection of all his people
to the last, he carried away with him the best wishes of all
among us who had made his acquaintance. The lecture room
and the chapel at Rhinecliff were built, and the rectory pur-
chased during Mr. Walsh's pastorate.
The Rev. A. F. Olmsted succeeded Mr. Walsh. He was
elected rector on the 29th of September, 1866, and entered on
his duties on the ist of November, 1866, is the present incum-
bent, and thus in the fourteenth year of his pastorate.
The Episcopalians of Rhinebeck, as they are almost every-
where else in America, are an intelligent, self-reliant people, and
manifest their zeal as Christians in a manner peculiar to them-
selves. Goodness with them is not so much a matter of going
to church and to meeting to exhort and probe each other for
spiritual manifestations, as it is deeds of actual and practical
benevolence. Mr. Olmsted's congregations are full in summer,
but not large in winter. He is a preacher of thorough educa-
tion, great learning, logical acumen and large charity.
The people in our little village of five churches are more dis-
posed to agree to differthan they were in times past, and the pres-
ence in our midst of Dominie Olmsted has contributed largely
to this result. A union among men of diverse opinions is far more
difficult, and requires much more culture and grace than a union
among those whose opinions are the same. The sentiment,
" No church but ours — our church or none," when held by two
sects in close proximity to each other, presages unneighborly
relations and impending war. Whereas, when they have been
brought to see that " the truth is not all with us, but shared by
our neighbors," harmony at once sets in. God is honored in
the evidence of human exaltation when men of different relig-
ious opinions have become able " to agree to differ."
The following persons are the present officers of the church :
THE RHINEBECK ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH. 163
Theophilus Gillender and James M. DeGarmo, wardens ; Am-
brose Wager, R. P. Huntington, Edward Jones, D. F. Sipperly?
F. H. Roof, James C. McCarty, and John O'Brien, vestrymen.
The following persons have been large contributors to the
establishment and the support of the church : Mrs. Mary
R. Miller, Mrs. Franklin Delano, Miss Elizabeth Jones, Mr.
Horatio Miller, Mr. Edward Jones, Mr. William Astor, and Mr«
Lewis Livingston.
Since the organization of the church there have been two
hundred and thirty-six baptisms and one hundred and twenty-
seven confirmations.
During the past year the church has been thoroughly re-
paired and painted, handsomely decorated in the interior, and
received four large and costly oil paintings, by celebrated artists,
from Rome — a gift from Mrs. Francis H. Delano.
CHAPTER XXIV.
RHINEBECK ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH.
The Roman Catholic Church was brought into the town
of Rhinebeck by Rev. Michael Scully, in 1862. He preached in
the hall of the Starr Institute during this year. A lot was pur-
chased, and steps taken to build a church in the village of
Rhinebeck, on the northwest corner of Livingston and Mul-
berry streets. This lot was sold, and finally became the prop-
erty of Henry Latson, who is the present owner and occupant.
In 1763 George Rogers, of Tivoli, bought of Charles H. Russell
six acres of land at RhineclifT, for $4,000, and deeded them
over to Rev. Michael Scully, the parish priest, for a church lot
and cemetery. St. Joseph's Church, at Rhinecliff, was erected
on this lot, under the direction of Father Scully, in 1864, with
George Veitch as architect, and John Bird as master mason.
164 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
CHAPTER XXV.
RHINEBECK FLATTS.
William Traphagen was the first owner of lands on
Beekman's Rhinebeck patent, and of a tract comprising several
•hundred acres, and including a part of the Flatts. On the 4th of
June, 1706, he called himself a wheelwright in Kingston, and
sold to Jacob Kip twenty-four acres of land, " situate, lying and
being in Dutchess county, to ye west of a hill, beginning at a
white oak tree marked with three notches and a cross, along ye
bounds of Col. Beekman's lands to a run of water on ye west
side, and along ye said run of water * * * to a bend in
said kill," etc. On the 17th day ofFebruary, 1710-11, he sold to
Arie Hendricks one hundred and twenty-eight and a half acres
of land, beginning at a plain of the said Col. Henry Beekman
on the east side of a small run of water, by some people called
Kip's kill, parting it from the lands of Hendrick Kip, Jacob Kip
and Gerrit Aartsen, extending south to the kill named Lands-
man's kill, where both do meet and join together in one, making
a point ; and on the east side all along and through the land of
the said William Traphagen.
On the 27th of April, 1736, William Traphagen made a
will in which he directed that all his landed estate should be
equally divided among his three children, Arent and William
Traphagen, and Geesje, his daughter, wife of Isaac Kool. On
the 25th of June, 1741, Arent and William deeded to Geesje
her share of this land in four lots ; one called her " home lot,"
containing thirty-five acres, three roods and thirty perches ; the
second, " lot No. 2," containing twenty-two acres, three roods
and sixteen perches ; the other, a " meadow lot " containing five
acres, two roods and twenty perches ; the other. " two acres of
upland or woodland, which remains undivided ; containing alto-
gether about sixty-six acres of land. Out of the home lot was
reserved " to the said William and Arent Traphagen two-thirds
of the old dwelling house which now stands on the said lot."
This old dwelling house was doubtless the old stone house
in West Market street, called the " old states prison." This was
RHINEBECK HOTEL. l6$
also pretty certainly the residence of William Traphagen, when
he joined Lawrence Osterhout and Jacob Kip in the request
for the land of the Reformed Dutch Church, in 1730, and was
thus one of the first substantial houses built in this town.
On the 26th of September, 1769, Isaac Cole, yeoman, and
Simon Cole, merchant, conveyed this land to Dr. Hans Kier-
stead, of Kingston, Ulster County, and about the same time
Everardus Bogardus became the owner of Arent Traphagen's
home and wood lot. In 1774, Evarardus Bogardus and Dr. Hans
Kiersted adjusted their boundaries by mutual conveyances. In
the conveyance of Bogardus to Kiersted we are told that the
lands of both are " situated in Rhinebeck precinct, on the west
side of the post road," and the division line agreed upon com-
mences " upon the south side of the road leading from the post
road to Kip's ferry, and on the east side of the lane leading
from the ferry road to Kiersted's house."
THE RHINEBECK HOTEL.
It thus appears that William Traphagen's lands were pur-
chased from Henry Beekman, the father, before 1706 ; that they
reached from the Rhinebeck kill to the post road ; and from the
junction of Landsman's and Rhinebeck kills in the sawmill pond
north to the north bounds of the land sold by him to Jacob Kip
in 1706 ; that the hotel corner fell to Arent Traphagen at the
death of his father; that at his own death, about 1769, it was
conveyed by his heirs to Everardus Bogardus, who was a mer-
chant here and probably an inn keeper also, from 1769 to the
close of the century. In 1802 the property was in the posses-
sion of Benjamin Bogardus, and on the 7th of October, in this
year, was conveyed by him to Asa Potter, who, according to
the Institute map, was an inn keeper in a house in the vicinity
of the present residence of Mrs. W. B. Piatt. Asa Potter died
on the 9th of October, 1805. On the 25th of November, 1807,
Philip J. Schuyler, as administrator of Asa Potter, sold the prop-
erty to Elisha R. Potter, of Kingston, Rhode Island. On the
nth of November, 1834, Elisha R. Potter sold it to Richard
Schell. On the ist of May, 1837, Richard Schell sold it to
Johnathan Wilson. On the 7th of September, 1839, David
l66 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
Seymour, master in chancery, sold it to Elisha R. Potter, son of
Elisha R. On the ist of May, 1848, Elisha R. Potter sold it to
Garret Van Keuren, Henry DeLamater and William B. Piatt.
From 1802, when this property passed out of the possession of
the Bogarduses, to the purchase by Van Keuren, DeLamater
and Piatt, in 1848, it seems to have been in the possession, or
under the lien of the Potters. William Jacques, by whose name
the house was known during most of the period between 1805
and 1848, appears in our old town records as early as 1794. He
died on the 9th of October, 1835, aged 67 years; and the house
ceased to be Jacques' hotel in 1837. It was rebuilt a few years
since, and greatly enlarged, and is now kept by the Tremper
Brothers, a first-class hotel.
RHINEBECK VII,LAGE.
A map of Rhinebeck Flatts, laid out in village lots, was
made by John Cox, Jr., as early as 1792. We have not seen
the original map, and do not know where to look for it, except
among the papers of the late Edward Livingston. We have
seen references to it in old deeds. In an old deed in the posses-
sion of Jacob L. Tremper, we are told that on the 20th of
March, 1799, Nathan Brownson and his wife sold to William
Tremper, " all that certain lot of land situated, lying and being
in the town of Rhinebeck, at the Flatts, and distinguished in a
map thereof, made by John Cox, as lot No. ii, beginning at
the southwest corner of Butler and Bartholomew's lot, known
as No. 9." This lot was bounded on one side by the post road,
and contained one acre of land. In a deed to William Carroll
for the Mathias lot on the west side of the post road, we are
told that it was conveyed by Margaret Livingston to Abraham
Adriance, and by said Adriance to Henry DeBaise, and known
as lot No. 4 in a survey made by John Cox, Jr.
We have a copy of a part of this map, covering the land laid
out on the east side of the post road, which shows that East
Market street was laid out as early as 1792, as far as the church
lands, now Mulberry street. In 1801, the commissioners of
highways carried this street through the church lands as a pub-
lic road, commencing at Pultz's corner, which was then in the
#
RHINEBECK VILLAGE. 167
possesion of Abram Brinckerhoff. In 1802, it became the Ulster
and Saulsbury turnpike. Before this date we can find no evi-
dence that there was a single building on East Market street.
The village seems to have been laid out in acre lots. The
southeast corner lot extended south to the church lot, and the
same distance east, being an exact square, and was purchased
by Coert and Henry DuBois. The next lot east, also a square,
was purchased by a Mr. Jones, probably Gen. Montgomery's
nephew. The next lot east was purchased by Philip Bogardus,
probably son of Everardus. The northeast corner, also a square
acre, was purchased by John T. Schryver and Tunis Conklin.
The next square east, by Asa Potter ; and the square next east
to his, by Frederick Kline. North, the lots had the depth of
two squares, and the width of half a square. The lot next east
to Schryver and Conklin's corner was purchased by Gen. Arm-
strong. The old building on the corner was built and used for
a store and post ofifice before 1800, and possibly many years be-
fore. The old house rebuilt by Dr. Van Vliet was the residence
of Asa Potter at an early date, and probably built by him. It
was, at one time, the residence of Coert DuBois, and at another,
of Henry F. Talmage. The residence of Jacob Schaad was on
the lot of Frederick Kline, occupied by him at an early date,
and probably built by him. The purchasers of these acre lots
subdivided them, and sold to other parties. On the 23d of No-
vember, 1807, Elisha R., son of Asa Potter, sold his lot to Peter
Brown and Christian Schell, then in the occupation of Schryver
and Conklin, and bounded westerly by Spaulding, and norther-
ly by Gen. Armstrong. These lots have had many owners.
Whether Coert and Henry DuBois built the first store on their
corner or not, we have not learned. They were merchants there
at an early date, and had, for successors, John Fowks, Christian
Schell, John Davis, Henry and James Hoag, George Schryver,
John Benner, Moses Ring, George Fellows and George Storm.
John Benner rebuilt the corner, and rented the second story to
John Armstrong, Esq., for a law office. John T. Schryver,
William Teller, Benjamin Schultz, Henry DeLamater, Freeman
Jennings, William Bates, Simon Welch and John M. Sandford
were merchants on the northeast corner. At the hotel corner,
1 68 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
Henry F. Talmage, Smith Dunning, John C. Ostrom, Isaac F.
Russell, William Bates and George Bard sold dry goods, gro-
ceries and hardware at different times. Piatt's corner was pur-
chased by Christian Schell, and the present stone edifice erected
thereon by him. We cannot learn from whom he made this
purchase. Our old people tell us that this was an open field be-
fore this date.
It was conveyed to William B. Piatt by Richard Schell in
1835, and is still in the possession of his family. We think the
store adjoining on the west, on the same premises, was the mil-
linery shop of Margaret A. Elmendorf and Gertrude Buckland
when we first knew it. The next building west was the well-
known storehouse of William S. Cowles & Co., for many years.
The first proprietor of whom we get knowledge was James Tel-
ler, whose executors conveyed it to Thomas and Albert Traver.
It is now in the possession of our worthy townsman, Martin
Diechelman, and in the occupation of David E. Ackert, mer-
cantile successor to the Cowles Brothers.
THE VILLAGE INCORPORATED.
The act for the incorporation of the village of Rhinebeck
was passed on the twenty-third of April, 1834. The first elec-
tion under it was held on the twenty-sixth of May, 1834, and
the ofificers elected were as follows : Trustees, Eliphalet Piatt,
Peter Pultz, John Drurj^, John I. Smith, John T. Schryver, Ja-
cob Heermance, John Jennings. Assessors, John A. Drum,
Theophilus Nelson, Stephen McCarty. Treasurer, Nicholas
Drury. On the seventeenth of June following, John T. Schry-
ver was elected president of the board of trustees, and Nicholas
V. Schryver, secretary. The president appointed John Drury,
John Jennings, and Peter Pultz, a committee to ascertain and
report the extent of side-walks necessary to be flagged ; John
I. Smith, John Drury and John Jennings, a committee on fire,
and Eliphalet Piatt, John Drury and Jacob Heermance, a com-
mittee on nuisances.
The part of the town of Rhinebeck included within the
limits of the corporation was as follows : " Beginning at the
northwest corner of the late Andrew Teal's land, it being also
THE VILLAGE INCORPORATED, 169
the southwest corner of Zachariah Traver's farm, at the old lot
line between the Rutsen and Beekman patents ; and running
thence south three degrees east, thirty-five chains, to Lands-
man's kill or creek ; thence along the south side thereof, as it
winds and turns, to a stone set by a rock, the stone being mark-
ed C ; thence north, twenty-four degrees west, twenty-four
chains fifty links, to the corner of John Teller's field on the line
between his lands and those of the late Henry B. Livingston,
at the south side of Ulster and Delaware turnpike ; thence
north, twenty-six degrees thirty minutes east, along their line
to Edward Livingston's land ; then across his land in the same
direction to a stone, twenty links southwest of an apple tree
marked ; the whole line measuring thirty-six chains fifty-seven
links; thence across the south end of Jeffry H. Champlin'sland
north eighty decrees east, eleven chains, sixty-six links, to his
southeast corner by the west side of the post road ; thence south
fifty degrees east forty-five chains to the place of beginning ;"
the territory embraced within these limits " to be known and
distinguished as the village of Rhinebeck." By an act of the
Ligislature passed in the year 1867, the limits of the village
were greatly extended, with the motive of those who petitioned
for it, to increase its taxable property. The farmers to be in-
cluded by this enlargement generally protested against it, and
John J. Hager had influence enough with the trustees and Le-
gislature to have his farm left out.
170 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
CHAPTER XXVI.
PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS AND BUSINESS.
THE STARR INSTITUTE.
The Starr Institute is a gift to the people from Mrs. Mary
R. Miller, a granddaughter of General Philip Schuyler, of Revo-
lutionary fame, in memory of her husband, the Hon. William
Starr Miller, who died in the city of New York in 1854. The
Institute building is a commodious and substantial structure,
perfectly adapted to its purpose. It contains a spacious free
public reading room on the right ; a circulating library and la-
dies' reception room on the left ; a large and handsome lecture
hall in the rear ; and a kitchen and dining hall in the basement.
The second story consists of one room, which is given to a
Standard Library. The price of membership is fifty cents per
year, which entitles the holder to draw books from the Circula-
ting Library, and to consult at his leisure those in the Standard
Library. A small rent is charged for the use of the Lecture
Hall. The Reading Room is stocked with the New York, Al-
bany and Poughkeepsie daily papers, and other reading matter,
and is free to all. The Institute was incorporated in 1862, and
the building completed in the same year.
the DE GARMO CLASSICAL INSTITUTE.
This educational institution had its birth in the Rhinebeck
Academy, established in the year 1840. It maintained its ex-
istence as an Academy, under different teachers, until i860,
when it became the property, by purchase, of Professor James
M. De Garmo, and has since been conducted under his name.
He erected the present large and handsome structure in 1871.
It is a prosperous school, and has everywhere an excellent repu-
tation.
UNION FREE SCHOOL.
.The lands for this School were procured and the building
erected in 1869. The districts were united and the school made
free several years earlier. The number of children in the dis-
trict, between the ages of five and twenty-one, is 655. The full
valuation of property in the district is,$ 1,162,789. The tax col-
lected in this year for the support of the school, was $2,1 10.
^BP
RHINEBECK HALL. I7I
THE RHINEBECK BANK.
The Bank of Rhinebeck was established in 1853. The sub-
scriptions to the stock were procured in the previous year by
Theophilus Gillender, Esq., on a paper, the heading to which
was drawn up hy Gouverneur Tillottson, Esq., who came into
the practice of the law here on the death of John Armstrong.
The Bank was commenced on a capital of one hundred and
fifty thousand dollars. It has since been raised to one hundred
and seventy-five thousand dollars. Its first of^cers were : Hen-
ry De Lamater, President ; Wm. B. Piatt, Vice-President ; De
Witt C. Marshall, Cashier. It has been well managed, and a
prosperous institution from the commencement.
THE RHINEBECK SAVINGS BANK.
For the establishment of this institution the public are also
indebted to the enterprise of Theophilus Gillender, Esq., who
was its first Secretary and Treasurer. It was organized in 1862.
Its deposits are now $248,150, and its present officers are:
Joshua C. Bowne, President ; Simon Welch, Secretary and
Treasurer.
RHINEBECK HALL.
In 1872 the people of Rhinebeck, at a special election, vo-
ted (238 to 128) to build a Town Hall. Virgil C. Traver, Esq.,
was supervisor of the town in this year, and, his term of ofifice
about to expire, the town auditors, on February 15, 1873, ap-
pointed him to superintend the construction of the building
until completed. It was finished in this year, at a cost of $20,-
500. The money was procured on the bonds of the town, all
of which, excepting four thousand dollars, have been redeemed.
The mason work was done by J as. D. Hogan and Rensselaer
Worden, and the carpenter work by Henry Latson, all Rhine
beck mechanics. It is a very handsome and a very substantial
building, answers all the purposes of its construction, and is
nearly self-supporting.
172 RHINEBECK GENEALOCxY.
CHAPTER XXVII.
THE BENNER FAMILY.
We find among the earliest settlers of Rhinebeck a branch
of the Benner family, of which the descendants in this county
are somewhat limited. Yet the name and family are largely
represented in the United States, especially in the States of
Maine, Pennsylvania and Virginia. It is perhaps one of the
largest German families ; and in the early Baronial times had a
remarkable history. The ancestors are described as being of
great size and muscular strength ; and many of them were dis-
tinguished as bold and gallant knights in the days of chivalry.
The following is an abstract from a work on chivalry and the
armorial bearings of families in central Europe, in the library
of Vienna, in Austria :
The Benner family is a very old and widely extended one
in Upper Bavaria and along the Rhine ; and among the many
distinguished men from this family, the first mentioned was a
knight by the name of Oluf, who is described as living on the
Benner estate, in Upper Bavaria ; and his name is preserved in
a chapel nearby, called "Chapel of Oluf der Benner," on ac-
count of the munificent gift which he made for its erection, in
the year 1053.
Gurth der Benner, while stiil a youth, joined the army of
the Crusaders under Godfried de Bouillon, in the year 1079,
and on the approach to Antioch, in the early dawn, when the
morning stars were waning, he encountered and slew a knight
of the enemy, who is said to have been of great size and strength ;
and for which heroic deed he was at Antioch made and called
" Knight of the Morning Star," and ever after wore a star in
the centre of his shield. He returned safely, and settled on the
banks of the Rhine ; and from him the family was there widely
extended.
Odo der Benner was a lineal descendant of the distinguish-
ed knight ; and as a knight himself was engaged in the tourna-
ment held at Maintz, in the year 1263, and was awarded the
first prize for his bold and dextrous exploits on that occasion.
m
THE RENNER EAMII.Y. 1/3
Waldemar der Benner, in the year 1322, was one of the
leaders of the RebelHon which was formed on the Rhine against
King Ludwig, and so distinguished himself at the battle of
Muhldorf that he afterwards received from the government not
only its highest honors but a large tract of land, extending to-
wards Bergennes, as the reward of his gallantry. Waldemar at
his death divided this large estate between his four sons and
the Cloister of Holy Laurentius, at Colle.
From this time onward the wealth and fame of the Benner
family began to decline, and four of the above named five sons
entered the Venetian army, and but one of them returned.
This was Wernker der Benner. He returned to his home, sold
what remained to him of his father's estate, and in the year
1362 entered the Cloister of Saint Laurentius, to which his fa-
ther had been such a liberal benefactor. How long he remain-
ed in the Cloister does not appear, but he left one son, Dietselm
der Benner, who appears to have returned to and cultivated the
land of his ancestors.
Ulrich der Benner was a son of Deitselm, and in 1387, we
are told, he went to Hohlstein and greatly improved his social
and pecuniary condition. But at the same time it is said his
descendants became numerous and poor, and were obliged to
pursue the ordinary avocations of life for their support.
Eustachias der Benner is the next name in the consecutive
history of the family. In the year 1435 he is mentioned as a
Stadtholder of one of the provinces, and, it is said, he held the
office many years on account of the faithful and upright man-
ner in which he discharged his duties.
After this, in 1520, the Bavarian wars set in, and the family
became very much scattered, and for a time lost to history.
Dietrich der Benner is the last named in history who bore
the armor of a knight, and claimed to belong to the Royal
lineage. He lived on a small estate in Bavaria, and on small
means, but still maintained the dignity and character of Royalty
until 1628, when he was appointed a Field Marshal of a division
of the Bavarian army, and so ably discharged his duties that he
became very distinguished, and received an addition to his es-
tate. On his shield he bore a rampant unicorn, on a ground of
o-reen and gold.
174 RHINEBECK GENEALOGY.
This Dietrich der Benner was a Protestant from Protestant
Bavaria, and was no doubt the General Benner who figured so
conspicuously in the History of the Huguenots. It is said that
all the Benners were notably Protestants.
About this time the name of this great family began to be
indifferently written Bender, or Benner, in different localities.
And it is supposed that the former authography arose from the
fact that large numbers of them located in different towns and
cities, and engaged in the same mechanical work, which required
binding, or tying together, such as book-binders and coopers ;
and from this circumstance they were as a family or class call-
ed Binders, or Benders. In the same way the aristocratic Dutch
of our own State, particularly at Albany, who had individual
names, were yet as a class called Knickerbockers, from the cir-
cumstance of having nearly all been employed in the making
and baking marbles for the children. The name is derived from
Knicker, a marble, and Bakker, a Baker. Knickerbakker, from
which the transition to Knickerbocker was easy.
In the records of the German Reformed Church here, Rev.
Johan Casper Rubel always wrote the name, Benner ; while
Rev. Gerhard Daniel Cock, who came after him, always wrote
it Bender.
The first family of the name in the town of Rhinebeck, of
which we have any tradition, was that of Valentyn Bender and
Margaret, his wife, who, with their two sons, Johannes and
Henrich, came to Rhinebeck from Upper Bavaria, in the begin-
ning of the 1 8th century. He obtained of Col. Henry Beek-
man the usual life-lease of a farm on the Hudson River,
about three miles north of Rhinebeck Landing, being the same
farm afterwards long the residence of Gen. Armstrong, and now
owned by the heirs of his son-in-law, Wm. B. Astor. The site
selected by Bender was too fine to leave him long at rest. Col.
Beekman and his family soon discovered that this was the finest
situation on the banks of the river, and wished to possess it
again without delay. He, therefore, proposed an exchange,
and offered for the surrender of the life-lease a like quantity of
land in fee, in any part of his lands. This proposition was ac-
cepted by Valentyn Bender, and eagerly by his wife, who, by
TiiK i?f.nnp:r p'amily. 175
the tradition of all her descendants, was a somewhat remarka-
ble woman, possessing an energetic character, and a keen eye
to the future. Col. Beekman thereupon executed a deed for a
piece of land situate about one mile sonthwest of Lower Red
Hook village, which forms a part of the farm which became the
Benner homestead, and which, from the time Valentyn Bender
took possession, under his deed, until about four years since,
was uninterruptedly owned and occupied by the Benner family.
The deed from Henry Beekman bears date, January 25, 1721,
and describes the lands as " certuating on a large plaine, being
part of a tract of land formerly obtained from Coll. Peter Schuy-
ler, on the east side of Hudson's river, in the above said Coun-
ty, lying northward from ye town of Rinbeek, and joins partly
to ye southeast end of a meadow called Peek's Vly, and so
northerly where it begaineth by a stony point, which is over
against where a small rune of whater comes from Countryman's
fountaine, and intersax with a small rune of whater that comes
out of the aforesaid Peek's Vly." This is the only deed we
have seen in which the land laid out for the High Butchers,
is called the " Town of Rhinebeck." It shows that Valentyn
Bender was not one of the settlers for whom the land was laid
out.
Valentyn Bender died soon after he took possession of this
farm, and left him surviving his widow, Margriet, his two sons,
Johannes and Henrich, and three daughters, Anna Maria, Cath-
arina, and Margriet. It was now that his widow Margriet dis-
played her energy and perseverance. She managed the house-
hold and the farm ; brought up the children in habits of indus-
try and frugality ; made large additions to her possessions ; and,
before her death, owned over three hundred acres of good land.
She lived to see all her daughters well married, and, at the close
of her life, divided her land between her two sons, giving to
Johannes the old homestead, and to Henrich that portion of
her acquired land which became the possession of Jacob Choi-
well, is still owned by his heirs, and which was sold by Henrich
some time after his mother's death.
Valentyn Bender certainly left two sons and two daugh-
ters, and there may have been a third son and daughter. The
176 RHINEBECK GENEALOGY.
daughters of whom we have knowledge were : Anna Maria, who
married Zacharias Schmidt, and Catharina, who married Hen-
rich Tidter, whose families are recorded on another page.
Henrich, son of Valentyn Bender, married Catharine Bet-
zer (now Pitcher), and had children as follows : Anna Margreda,
baptized May 6, 1 741, married Jan. 20, 1761, Zacharias Volandt ;
Catharina, baptized Aug. 12, 1744, married Feb. 7, 1762, Fred-
erick Streit, Jr. ; Annatjin, baptized Jan. 27, 1752, married Oct.
10, 1774, Phillip Mohr ; Christina, married Dec. 16, 1770, Petrus
Mohr ; Magdalena, baptized May 18, 1755; Henrich, baptized
Sept. 10, 1758, married Catharina Pitcher, probably his cousin.
There were other children in this family, probably born between
1744 and 1752, of whose baptism the book before us contains
no record. '
Johannes, son of Valentyn Bender, married Magdalena
Streid (now Streit), and had children as follows : Hans Velden,
in other words, Valentyn, the son of Hans, born Dec. 26, 1741,
married, ist, Alida VVeitman, 2d, Lydia Feroe, widow, ist of
Conrad Lasher, 2d, of Benjamin Van Steenburgh ; Catharine,
baptized Aug. 12, 1744; Henrich, baptized Aug. 16, 1751, mar-
ried Marytjen Sagendorf ; Johannes, baptized Oct. 1753 ; Jaco-
bus, baptized Feb. 15, 1756; Anna Maria, baptized Aug. 13,
1758; Petrus, baptized Dec. 11, 1763, married Jenneken Wal-
dorf; Ludowick, baptized Jan. 29, 1766. There were other
children in this family, also, of whom the book before us con-
tains no records.
Henry Bender, Jr., and Catharina Pitcher, had children as
follows: Catharine, baptized May 27, 1780, married, Nov. 8
1801, Garret Cock ; Henry, baptized June 29, 1783, married
Jan. I, 1805, his cousin, Anna Moore ; Maria, baptized Oct. 9,
1785, married, Jan. 8, 1804, John Knickerbocker; Elizabeth,
baptized Dec. 8, 1788, married Cyrus Burnap ; Christina, born
May II, 1799, married Capt. Samuel Nelson.
Hans Felten Bender and Alida Wietman had children, as
follows: Hellena, born Dec. 19, 1775, married Capt. David Sip-
perly ; John, born Aug. 20, 1797, married, Sept. 8, 1808, Han-
nah Schryver ; Elizabeth, born Oct. 13, 1789, married Jacob
Sipperly ; Jacob, born Sept. 27, 1791, married Dec. 25, 1810,
THE KENNER FAMILY. 1/7
Margaret Feroe ; Wilhelmus, born March 2, 1794, married Hel-
lena Ostrander ; Amy, died young.
Peter Bender and Jenneken Waldorf had children, as fol.
lows : William and Maria, twins ; William married Elizabeth
Feller ; Maria married George J. Pultz ; Lena, married Fred-
erick Havener ; Elizabeth, married Peter Hevenor ; Anna,
married Phillip P'raleigh.
Of Hans Felton Benner's children we have the record of
Jacob and his wife, Margaret Feroe. They had children, as
follows: Lydia Maria, born December 8, 181 1; Henry, born
Feb. 19, 18 1 5 ; Robert, born Feb. i, 18 18; Jacob Benner's wife,
Margaret Feroe, died in 1824. He married, for a second wife,
Helen Moore, by whom he had one child, a daughter, Margaret.
Jacob Benner was an industrious and successful farmer,
and the last Benner owner and occupant of the homestead in
Red Hook. He held several ofifices of public trust. He was
Supervisor and Justice of the Peace in his town, and for several
years Justice of the County Court of Sessions. He died, Nov.
5, 1869. The Hon. Augustus Martin married his daughter,
Lydia Maria, for a first, and her half sister, Margaret, for a sec-
ond wife. The latter survives her husband. His son, Henry,
is now, and has for many years been a resident of the city of
Newark, N. J. His son, Robert, is a practicing lawyer in the
city of New York, and has for many years had his residence at
Astoria, L. L He married, Oct. 10, 1848, Miss Mary Van Ant-
werp Shaw, by whom he had sons, Franklin, Charles, and Willis,
and a daughter, Mary. His wife dying, June 10, 1867, he mar-
ried, for a second, Miss Helen Stanly Brown, Feb. 21, 1871.
UNKNOWN BENNERS.
We find among a number of Benners whose lineage we are
not able to trace, a George Emerich Benner ; a Frederick Ben-
ner, with Neeltje Heermance for a wife ; a Johannes Benner,
with Catharine Enck for a wife ; a John Jacob Benner, with
Margaritha Tidtmor for a wife ; and a Henrich Tidtmor, with
an Elizabeth Benner for a wife. The last parties were the
parents of John, Susanna and Daniel Tidtmor, persons w^ho
have descendants still living in Rhinebeck and Red Hook, and
other places.
178 RHINEBECK GENEALOGY.
THE BERGH FAMILY.
Christian Bergh, the first, was the grandson of Chasper and
the son of John Bergh. He was a resident of what is now the
town of Rhinebeck in 1723. He was born in the month of
May, in the year 1700. On the 7th of August, 1722, he mar-
ried Anna Margretta Wolleben, who was one year and six
months his senior. Hans Felten, Peter, and Peter Wolleben,
Jr., were in Rhinebeck at the same time ; and we presume Anna
Margretta was the daughter of one, and perhaps the sister of
the others. They were doubtless among the Palatines brought
over by Governor Hunter, and of the thirty-five families settled
on the land laid out for the " High Butchers" by Henry Beek-
man, the elder, and called " Rein Beek." One of them was the
owner of a farm now included in the premises of Walter L. Ten
Broeck, Esq., by a deed bearing date October 20th, 17 18.
Christian Bergh and Anna Margretta Wolleben had children,
as follows ;
Anna Margretta, born December 13, 1725 ; Maria Barbara,
born December 27, 1727; Cattarina, born January 26, 1729;
Johannes, born November 15, 1731 ; Johan Petter, born No-
vember 20, 1733; Johan Marthin, born November 4, 1735;
Anna Maria, born October 14, 1737; Adam, born August 16,
1740; Christian, born December 19, 1742.
Of these children, all born in Rhinebeck, we assume that
Anna Margretta married Frederick Hillegas ; Maria Barbara,
Martin Dob ; Catharina, Michael Brua ; Johannes, Elizabeth
Weist; Adam, Helletje Radcliff. Christian certainly married
Catharina Van Benschoten.
Christian Bergh, the first, died August the 9th, 1780; his
wife, Anna Margretta Wolleben, died December the 5th, 1782 ;
they were both buried in Peter Fralick's burying yard. John
Bergh, son of Christian, the first, died August 14, 1794, and was
also buried in Peter Fralick's burying yard.
We have no knowledge of Peter Fralick's burying yard. It
was somewhere in the precinct of Rhinebeck. Peter Fralick
resided on the post road, between Beekman's mill at the Flatts,
and Peter Schryver's, in 1753; and Christian Bergh, between
THE BERGH p-AMILY. 1/9
Peter Schryver's and the south end of the precinct. Mr. Ed-
ward Braman, a native of Staatsburgh, informs us that lots Nos.
I and lo of Pawhng's purchase, or Staatsburgh, were the pro-
perty of Major John Pawhng, who built, in 1761, the stone
house now standing. His initials and those of his first wife,
Neeltje (Van Keuren,) are cut on a stone inserted in the wall
of this house ; and he finds that " Christian Bergh, in the same
year Major Pawling built his house, 1761, bought of Gertruyd
Coeymans, of the province of New Jersey, widow, lots 6 and
15; (239 and 256 acres,) in the Stattsburgh patent. This is
about two miles south of Major Pawling's, and now closely ad-
joining the village of Staatsburgh. On this property he built
a house of two stories, like most of the best houses of that day,
of stone. A large stone in the east end, facing the road, bore
an inscription upon two hearts joined, as follows :
" C B — A MBA B — H B
" These are the initials of Christian Bergh and his wife,
Anna Margaretta (Wolleben), and of his son, Adam, and his wife,
Hilletje (Radcliff). This house stood until 1854, when its own-
er, Frederick Marshall, rebuilt, but preserved this stone, which
may still be seen in the cellar wall of the new house, now the
property of Mr. Richard Schouten. No doubt Christian Bergh
died in this old house. The property remained in the family
until 1789, when John Bergh and Elizabeth his wife released
the same to Charles Shaw and others (mortgagees), who sold
the south part, with the house, to Captain Jesse Eames, of Fra-
mingham, Mass., in 1790, and shortly after the north part to
Captain Isaac Russell, of Sherborn, Mass."
CHRISTIAN THE SECOND.
Christian Bergh, the second, born December 19, 1742, mar-
ried Catharina Van Benschoten, on the nth of March, 1762.
Tunis Van Benschoten, of Kingston, married Anna Sleight, of
Rhinebeck, granddaughter of Kendrick Kip, on the 4th of De-
cember, 1737. Catharina was probably his daughter. Chris-
tian Bergh and Catharine Van Benschoten had children as fol-
lows :
l80 RHINEBECK GENEALOGY.
Christian, born April 30, 1763, and baptized in the Witten-
burgh church; Tunis, born July 2, 1765, and baptized in the
Rhinebeck church ; John, born December 14, 1766, and baptized
in the Rhinebeck church ; Elsye,* born February, 1769, and
baptized at Rhinebeck church ; Adam, born February 20, 1771,
and baptized by Dominie Cuypers, of the Flatts church, at the
house ; Peter, born May 6, 1 773, and baptized in the Flatts church ;
Anna Margreta, born April 20, 1775, and baptized at Rhine-
beck church ; Cattarina, born December 12, 1776, and baptized
at Rhinebeck church ;f David, born January 24, 1780, and bap-
tized in New York; Jacob, born in New York, April 4, 1782,
and baptized " at the Presbyterian Dutch meeting house in said
place;" Cattarina, born October i, 1788, and baptized at her
father's house in Shelburn, Nova Scotia.
Of this family of eleven children, Christian, the third, born
December 19, 1763, was the father of Henry. Bergh, the presi-
dent of the New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to
Animals, and also of the late Edwin Bergh, of Staatsburgh.
Cattarina died October 29, 1781, and was buried at Newtown;
David died at New York, April 8, 1782, and was buried in the
" High Dutch Presbyterian burying yard ;" Jacob died August
21, 1783, and was buried "at the Presbyterian meeting house;"
Adam died at sea, November 19, 1790, nine days out from
Jamaica ; his remains were committed to the sea ; John was lost
at sea, in a severe storm, on the 25th or 26th of November,
1793 ; Peter died January 16, 1805, and was buried at Batavia,
in the Island of Java. He was master of the ship Frances
Henrietta, of New York.
Christian Bergh, the second. Died October 20, 1803 - his
wife, Catharina Van Benschoten, December ii, 1831.
ADAM BERGH.
The name Radcliff is differently spelled by different per-
sons, and often by the same person. The records of the Camp
*The record of this child's birthday we are told "was destroyed by the rebels in
1775."
f The Rhinebeck church always means the German Reformed Church at Pink's
corner.
THE BERGH FAMILY. l8l
German Reformed Church tell us Joachim, the son of Joachim
Radclift and Hellitje Hogeboom, was baptized by Dominie
Casper Ludawick Schnorr, in 1748. Dominie Cock, in the
Rhinebeck book of the German Reformed Church, spells the
name at one time Redleft ; at another, Redle ; at another, Redd-
left ; and at another, Redlift. Major William, we think, always
spelled his name Radclift. We assume that Adam Bergh was
the son of Christian Bergh, the first, and his wife Hellitje Rad-
clift, the daughter of Joachim Radclift and Hellitje Hogeboom,
born March 31st, 1843, and married in 1762. They had chil-
dren baptized in the Rhinebeck German Reformed Church, as
follows :
Anna Margreta, January 26, 1763 ; sponsors, Christian
Berg and Anna Margreta Wooleben. Joachim, November 6,
1764; sponsors, Corneles Redle and Helentie Hoogeboom.
Helentien, September 7, 1766; sponsors, Johannes Redle and
Neeltjen Schemehoorn. Neeltjen, November 8, 1772 ; sponsors,
Rudolf V. Hoovenburg and Elizabeth Reddleft. Catharina,
September 1 1, 1774 ; sponsors, Michel Brua and Catharina Berg.
Christian, September 15, 1776; sponsors, Christian Berg and
Anna Margreth WoUeben. Sarah, born July 17, 1778 ; spon-
sors, William Reddleft and Sarah Kip.
All we know of these children is that Joachim married
Leah Radclifd (according to Dominie Scheaffer), and probably
his own cousin. He was cousin to Christian Bergh, the third.
Henry Burgh, the New York friend of the brute creation, and
Mrs. Henry J. Kip, the mother of William Bergh Kip, were
therefore second cousins.
ZACHARIAS SCHMIDT.
Zacharias Schmidt's name is the first to be found in the
oldest church records in the town of Rhinebeck. But there is
nothing to tell us that he had either father, mother, brother or
sister, in this or any other country. He owned the farm, now
the property of James Way, at a very early date, but was pre-
ceded in the ownership by Johannes Backus, whose deed was
dated, October 20, 1718, and who was thus one of the " High
I 82 RHINEBECK GENEALOGY.
Butchers" who founded Rhinebeck. He was Voor Leser in the
old German Reformed Church, and many of its records are in
his handwriting. He sold a lot of his land to Ryer Schermer-
horn, in 1773. We are told Ryer Schermerhorn built the house
now known as " Shop's old store house," at the corner, north
of Walter L. Ten Broeck's, on this land, and conducted a mer-
cantile business therein during the Revolutionary war. After
Zacharias Schmidt's death his place was occupied for awhile
by his son, Wilhelmus, and in 1798 was Moul's tavern.
Zacharias Schmidt's wife was Anna Maria Bender, now
Benner. They had children, as follows : Johannes, baptized
April 5, 1830, married Feb. 3, 1761, Elizabeth Zipperlie ; Hen-
rich, baptized April 13, 1735, married Margaret Whiteman, Jan.
19, 1792. (Think he is the Johannes Henrich Smit found at
Niskata by Pierson, with a son Zacharias, by Margaret White-
man, baptized May 15, 1763, "when he was six weeks old," and
who married Margaret Peesinger for a second wife, October 8,
1765, by whom he had Andries, Elizabeth and Sabina.) Catha-
rine, baptized May 1 1, 1738, married Jan. 8, 1760, Johan George
Schneider; Phillippus, baptized Mayii, 1738, married Nov.
29, 1762, Elizabeth Hoff ; Peter, baptized Aug. 13, 1741, mar-
ried April 4, 1763, Elizabeth Berringer ; Anna Margreda, bap-
tized Sept. 30, 1744, married Jan. 23, 1763, Conrad Berringer;
Anna Maria, baptized Jan. 9, 1753, married Nov. 7, 1773, Jere-
miasWelsch; Annatjen, married Cornelius Welsch, 2d,Christo-
vel Weaver; Wilhelmus, married Anna Miiller.
Johannes Schmidt and Elizabeth Zipperlie had children, as
follows: Zacharias, baptized May 31, 1762, married Gretjen
Holtzapple; Catharine, baptized Dec. 11, 1763, married Jacob
Milhelm ; Anna Maria, baptized 1767, married Johan Henrich
Deves; P'rederick, baptized May 12, 1771, married Catharine
Strong; Philip, born June 27, 1773, married Dec. 4, 1796 ; Anna
Coopernail, born October 26, 1778 ; Johannes, baptized Dec. 6,
1778, married Sarah Snell, born 1786.
Philip Smith and Anna Coopernail had children born, as
follows : Sophia, March 3, 1798 ; Elizabeth, June 9, 1800 ; John,
April 16, 1802; Catharine, October 29, 1803; Henry, Septem-
ber 6, 1805; Anna, December 29, 1808; Margaret, April 9,
DR. HANS KIERSTEAD. 1 83
1809; William, December 25, 1810; Philip, June 17, 1812 ;
George, October 8. 1815 ; Edward M., March 29, 1817; Zacha-
riah, March 5, 18 19; Ebenezer, April 20, 1823. Philip, the
father, died Dec. 13, 185 1.
EVERARDUS BOGARDUS,
Everardus Bogardus' wife was Adriantjen Hoochtieling.
At the baptism of their son, Wilhelmus, on the 25th of October,
1772, the sponsors were Wilhelmus Hoochtieling and his wife,
Blendina Kierstead. The Bogarduses, Kiersteads, and Hooch-
tielings were thus probably related by intermarriages, and
probably immigrated from Kingston to Rhinebeck about the
same time. Everardus Bogardus died on the 9th of September,
1799, aged 61 years. He has a large tombstone, but a lonely
grave, in the old cemetery of the Reformed Dutch Church.
DR. HANS KIERSTEAD.
Dr. Hans Kierstead was born in 1743. He came to Rhine-
beck in 1769, and thus at the age of twenty-six years. He
married Jane, the daughter of Anthony Hoffman and Catharine
Van Gaasbeck, of Kingston. She was born in Kingston in 1744.
Their daughter, Sally, was baptized by Dominie Cock, of the
Rhinebeck German Reformed Church, on the 15th of August,
1773, the sponsors being David DeLamater and Sally Hoffman.
Martin Heermance married Sally Kierstead on the 15th of
June, 1789. Dr. Hans Kierstead's first residence was the old
stone house which stood on the south of the Wager lot, was
taken down by Martin L. Marquet some years since, and reached
by the lane referred to in the deed from Everardus Bogardus.
A record in Martin Heermance's family Bible says : " We
moved into our new house, October 19, 1793." It is now
known that this new house was the brick house now the resi
dence of Eugene Well?, and sold to John L Teller by Martin
Heermance, in 18 16. Dr. Hans Kierstead died September
29, 181 1, aged sixty-eight years; his wife died January 18, 1808,
aged sixty-four years; Martin Heermance died July 31, 1824,
aged fifty-nine years ; Martin Heermance's wife died July 18,
1838, aged sixty-five years.
1 84 RHINEBECK GENEALOGY.
HERMAN BROWN.
Herman Brown, the common ancester of the old and re-
spectable family of Browns in the town, appears here at an
early date. Herman Braun and Maria Magdalena Hoffman,
supposed to have been his wife, stood sponsors at the baptism
of Maria Magdalena, the daughter of Henrich Meyer and Eliz-
abeth Monk, in 1738. This is a record in the old book of the
German Reformed Church, at Pink's corner. It is held by
the family that this Herman Brown had three children, of
whom one was Bastian. Bastian Braun was married to Marga-
retha Schultz, the daughter of Christian Otto Schultz, on the
2 1st of February. 1767, by Dominie Cock, of the German Re-
formed Church. They had three children, as follows: Peter,
born in 1770, died April 4, 1841 ; John, born in 1773, died
March 2, 1824; Helen, died young. Bastian Braun died, and
his widow married Richard Schell, born in Germany, in 1740.
He and his wife, Margaretha Schultz Braun, had four children,
as follows : Christian, William, Christina, and Catharine.
WILLIAM COOPERNAIL.
John Van Coppenol, from Remsen, farmer, with wife and
two children, came to New Netherlands in the ship Faith, in
1659, and probably settled in the Mohawk Valley. The Hon.
John Sanders, in his History of Schenectady, says Cornelius^
Antonisen Van Slyck married the daughter of a Mohawk chief-
tain, by whom he had several children ; that the youngest
daughter, Leah, married Class Willemse Van Coppernol, who
died in 1692, leaving a son named William. I assume that
Class Willemse was one of the children brought over by Jan
Van Coppernol, in 1659 ; that his son, William, by Leah Van
Slyck, his wife, was the William Coppernoll found a freeholder
in Schenectady in 1720 ; that the William Coopernail who came
among the Dietz's in what is now the town of Milan, about
1760, with his mother, a widow, was probably the son of Wil-
liam Coppernall, found in Schenectady in 1720. The children
of William Coopernail, all dead now, only remembered that he
came from Schoharie, or somewhere west of Albany. He mar-
ried Sophia Keil, born in Neuremburg, Germany, 1746, who
CHRISTIAN SCHELL. 1 85
came to the country with other members of her family, and
settled among the Elseffers, in Rhinebeck. They had children
as follows: Anna and Elizabeth, twins, born October 26, 1778.
Philip, baptized March 29, 1781 ; Henrich, baptized November
2,1783; Catharine; John, born 1789; Wiiliam, born 1792.
Anna married Philip Smith ; Elizabeth, John Titemore ; Philip,
Rebecca Shaefer; William, Deborah Row ; John, Maria Feroe ;
Catharine, Henry G. Livingston, Jr. William Coopernail, the
father, was in the Revolutionary army, and visited home on a
permit over Washington's own signature. This paper was in
the possession of the family for many years, but is now lost.
The twins, We have heard their mother say, were born in his ab-
sence in the army, and were able to walk about the house when
he was at home on this visit. Anna died April 17, 1864, aged
eighty-six years. The last words we ever heard her utter, were
that she came into the world in the midst of a terrible war, and
should go out of it in the midst of another. She lost two or
three grandsons in the battles of the Union army. When in her
last illness, a child was born whose grandmother and great-
grandmother were both her own daughters.
She sent for the child in order that she might be able to say,
before she left the world, that she had held in her arms a child
in the fourth generation from herself — a great-great-grandchild.
It was brought to her by the grandmother, and placed in her
arms while reclining in her bed. When it had been taken from
her, the grandmother — her daughter, a strong, healthy, loving
woman — lifted her mother out of the bed, and, seating herself,
held her in her own arms while another smoothed and softened
her bed for her last sleep. Her thirteen children were all living
and at her funeral, the youngest forty-one years old. She was
a strong, pure and ndble mother. The lamps of her intellect
and love never grew dim while she lived, and are beaming
brightly now in the memory of all who knew her. A colored
woman, nearly as old as herself, who had been her slave, walked
four miles to be at her funeral and weep at her grave.
CHRISTIAN SCHELL.
Christian Schell was baptized by Dominie Johann F. Ries,
of the Rhinebeck Lutheran Church, on the i ith of August, 1779.
1 86 RHINEBECK GENEALOGY.
He married Elizabeth Hughes, of Hyde Park, widow of Cap-
tain Pope, by whom he had eight children, as follows : Emily,
Richard, Julius, Robert, Augustus, Edward, Francis and Julia.
In 1805 he kept a store on the post road where Ezra Van Vrad-
enburgh now resides — a place known at this date as " Bear Mar-
ket." In 181 2 he bought the mill property at the junction of
Landsman and Rhinebeck creeks, of Colonel Henry B. Living-
ston. In 1816 he was on the Flatts, and built the stone store
and dwelling on Piatt's corner, and conducted a prosperous
mercantile business therein to the close of his life. He died-
on the 1 8th of March, 1825, aged forty-six years ; his wife died
July 16, 1866. His son, Augustus, was graduated at Union
College, and bred to the law, commencing his studies with
John Armstrong, in this village. He was collector of the port
of New York, and is widely known as a lawyer, financier and
politician. Robert is president of the Bank of the Metropolis,
and Edward of the Manhattan Savings Bank. Richard, born
May 29, 1 810, died November 10, 1879. He was elected State
senator in 1856, and representative in Congress from New York
in 1875.
ABRAHAM VAN KEUREN.
Abraham Van Keuren was the son of Abraham, born Sep-
tember 20, 171 1. He was born February 9, 1752, and died
April 25, 1817. His wife was Eve Dumond, born October 17,
1755 ; died November 3, 1824. Their children were, Abraham,
born April 4. 1774, married Christina Gedney ; Garrett, born
February 14, 1785, married Sarah Hagadorn ; Catherine, mar-
ried Nicholas B. Van Steenburgh ; James married, ist, Caroline
Van Steenburgh ; 2d, Margaret DeLamater.
Thomas Reed's farm, in the north of the village, comprises
part of the land conveyed to Peter and William Ostrander, by
the elder Henry Beekman, in 17 14. At the death of William
Ostrander, in 1733, his son had the land divided, and set over
to Peter his share by deed. On the i8th of November, 1749
Peter sold his share to his son, Jacob. On the 6th of Novem-
ber, 1761, Jacob sold it to Johannes Valentin Casparus. On
the 2d of March, 1771, Johannes Valentin Casparus sold it to
THE SCMULTZ FAMILY. 187
Everardus Bogardus, who sold it to Johannes Turck, of Kings-
ton, in the same year. In 1775 this land was in possession of Pe-
ters Ten Broeckand his wife, Catharina Rutsen. and in the sarne
year sold by them to William Schepmoes. On the 5th of May^
1783, Johannes Turck and his wife, and William Schepmoes
and his wife, sold it to Abraham Van Keuren, of Kingston.
Abraham Van Keuren thus came into Rhinebeck at the close
of the Revolution.
ROBERT SCOTT.
Robert Scott was born at Fries, in the county of Norfolk,
England, August 21, 1760. His wife, Elizabeth Kitching, was
born at West Ashley, Lincolnshire, October 10, 1762. They
were married December 7, 1784. Their children were : Eliza-
beth, born at Ganesborough, March 21, 1786; Ann, born at
Derby, April 29, 1787, died at Nottingham, April 26, 1788:
Allen, born at Horncastle, August 12, 1789; Ann, born at
Lynn, in Norfolk, September 29, 1791 ; Robert, born at New
York, February, 1796, and died at Rhinebeck in the same year;
Mary, born at Rhinebeck Flatts, November 6, 1798 ; Jane, born
at Rhinebeck Flatts, September 23, 1801. In a record made by
himself, Robert Scott says he left England, sailing from Lon-
don, August 21, 1794, and arrived at New York October loth
in the same year. " My reasons for leaving England," he says,
" were, first, for the sake of religious liberty, not being able to
take the oaths then required of those who dissented from the
Episcopal Church ; second, for the sake of civil liberty ; third,
because I saw from Scripture prophecy that the time was at
hand when all the kingdoms which sprang from the Roman
monarchy, and had been subject to papal jurisdiction, would
undergo great calamities and changes by pouring out the vials ;
and that this country would probably prove an asylum during
those troubles."
■ CHRISTIAN OTTO SCHULTZ.
Christian Otto Schultz was born January 22, 17 12, in Ger_
many, at Bredenfeld, in the dukedom of Mecklenburgh-Strelitz •
died at Rhinebeck, November 5, 1785. His wife, Christina
Margaret Sharpenstein, was born in April, 171 3, in Germany, at
1 88 RHINEBECK GENEALOGY.
Sasenburgh, in the county of New Witt. Died at Rhinebeck,
October 20, 1779, at the residence of her son, John Schultz.
They had eleven children born in Rhinebeck, Dutchess County,
N. Y., as follows:
I. Anna, born August 28, 1737 ; married H. Dencker, August
31, 1756. 2. Abraham, born December 4, 1738; married Deb-
orah Killburn, March 17, 1765. 3. Isaac, born July 28, 1740;
married Mary Killburn, March 17, 1765; died 1803. 4. Chris-
topher, born January 12, O. S. ; married Rebecca ChurchilU
January, 1768; died 1808. 5. Margaret, born March 6, 1745;
married, first, Bastian Brown, February 22, 1767 : second, Rich-
ard Schell ; died 1818. 6. Christian, born October 27, 1746;
married Hannah Gardner. 7. Frederick, born April 5, 1748;
married Margaret Crapser December 3, 1771 ; died 18 19. 8.
Peter born May 26, 1750; married Anna Vanderhoff January
19, 1772; died 1837. 9- William, born July 23, 1752; married
Anna Killburn September 19, 1799. 10. Jacob, twin brother
to William, married Ursula Schryver August 17, 1799. H.
John born February 18, 1755; married Anna Van Steenburg ;
born January 8, 1767; died January 7, 1801.
John Shultz and Anna Van Steenburgh had ten children;
Sarah, married John G. Ring; Christian Otto, William, Benja-
min, born January 21, 1790 ; died April 4, 1793 ; Abraham, born
September 28, 1791 ; married Mary Smith ; (Jackson S. Schultz
of New York, is their son.) Benjamin, born April 29, 1793;
married Catharine Ackert (born September 13, 1794) June 13,.
1813; died April 4, 1873; John William, born November 23,
1796; Christina Margaret, born November 28, 1799; married
Henry H. Traver ; Jane Ann, twin to Christina Margaret, mar-
ried Frederick Schaffer ; Mary, born September 24, 1801 ; mar-
ried George Snyder.
THE SIPPERLY FAMILY.
This name is Zipperly in all the old records. The name is not
found among the taxable people in the town in 1723 ; and
yet Barent Zipperly obtained a lease in 1721, from the Beekman
heirs, of the farm, out of which were reserved the four acres for
the church and cemetery lot at Pink's corner. In 1 724, the same
THE SIPPERLV FAMILY. I89
farm was leased by the same parties with the same reservation
to Hendrick Beam. In 1726, Barent Zipperly purchased from
Hans Adams Frederick the lease of the farm which embraced
the land which is now the church and cemetery lot of the
" Rhinebeck Stone Church " (St. Peters Lutheran Church). In
1729, Barent Zipperly was one of the four Lutheran trustees
who sold the Lutheran interest in the church and church lot at
Pink's corner to the Reformers. In 1730, five acres were de-
tached from his farm by Gilbert Livingston, and given to the
Lutherans for a church and cemetery lot. A tombstone in this
cemetery tells us he died, and was buried therein in 1734. We
have no doubt all the Zipperlies who have had birth, have lived
and died, and are now living in Rhinebeck, were descended
from this man. His farm remained in the possession of his
son, Michael, until 1768, when he sold the lease to the trustees
of the church for a glebe.
Michael Zipperly married Regina Schever, and had two
children baptized in the German Reformed Church, as follows :
Johannes, May 21, 1739; Anna Barbara, May, 1741. We have
not consulted the records of the Lutheran church for other
children which he probably had. Frederick Zipperly, brother
to Michael, married Maria Catharina Wegeli, the daughter of
Hans Michael Wegeli, who was the original owner of the Zip-
perly farm, now the property of William I. Lown. Frederick
Zipperly's will bears date, 1743 ; he probably died within this
year. He probably had a daughter, Christina, married to Peter
Brosius. He certainly had a son, George, married to Anna
Maria Reichert ; a daughter Elizabeth, married to Johannes
Schmidt ; and a son, Johannes, married to Rebecca SchafTer.
George Zipperly and Anna Maria Reichert had children as
follows ; Frederick, married Elizabeth Neher ; David, married
Lena Benner ; Elizabeth, married Jonas Simons; Catharina,
died unmarried.
Johannes Zipperly and Rebecca Schaffer had children as
follows: Frederick, married Christina Fraleigh ; John, married
Rachel Fraleigh; Henry, married Elizabeth Neher; George,
died unmarried ; Jacob, married Elizabeth Benner; David, mar-
ried Catharine Hoff ; Catharine, married George Traver; Eliza-
190 RHINEBECK GENEALoGV.
beth, married John Lambert ; Rebecca, married David Teal ;
Anna Maria, died unmarried.
THE COOKINGHAM FAMILY.
We trace the Cookinghams of Rhinebeck back to two an-
cestors ; to Johan George, who was married to Anna Schmidt,
by Dominie Van Hovenburgh, in 1755, the record stating that
he was born in Germany ; and to Daniel, who was married to
Anna Maria Treber, daughter of Bastian Treber, December 9,
1756, by Dominie Johan Casper Rubel, of the German Re-
formed Church. These men were doubtless brothers, and relat-
ed— probably brothers — to Barbara, the wife of Michael Boltz,
who appears in our records for the first time in 1738. The name
was differently spelled by different ministers, and also by the
same minister. Dominie Mancius spelled it in one case Cuck-
enhan, and in another, Kukenheiner. Dominies Cock and Ru-
bel spelled it Kuckenheim. George Kuckenheim and Anna
Schmidt had daughters, Maria Barbara and Annatjen, and a son,
Petrus ; and Daniel Kuckenheim and Anna Maria Treber had a
son, Johan Michael, and a daughter, Margaretha, baptized in
the German Reformed Church. There were more children^
which, for the want of family records, we are unable to trace.
One branch of the family settled in the town of Milan, and be.
came Quakers.
THE BARRINGER FAMILY.
This name is Berringer in all the old church records. Jo-
hannes Berringer's name appears among the heads of families
taxed in the North Ward in 1723. He was possibly the com-,
mon ancestor of all the Barringers now in Dutchess and Colum-
bia Counties. The deed for the old Barringer farm, now the
property of Thomas Reed, was given to Conradt Barringer by
Henry Beekman in 1734. He is doubtless the same person who
was a trustee of the German Reformed Church in 1729, who
was a freeholder in the precinct of Rhinebeck in 1740, and who
appears in the old church records with Elizabeth Staal for a
wife in 1 74 1.
On the 14th of September, 1741, Jacob Berringer and Ger-
trout Schneider had a son, Conrad, baptized, the sponsors being
THE BARRINGER FAMILY. I9I
Conrad Berringer and Lizabeth Staal. On the i6th of Septem-
ber, 1744, Frederick Berringer and Margaret Zufelt had adaugh
ter, EHzabeth, baptized, the sponsors being again Conrad Ber
ringer and Elizabeth Staal. On the 14th of October, 1744, Hen_
rich Berringer and Elizabeth Best had a daughter, Elizabeth,
baptized, the sponsors being Henrich Schever and Elizabeth
Berringer. Now we assume that Conrad Berringer and Elizabeth
Staal were the parents of Jacob, Frederick and Henrich Ber-
ringer, and that the wife of Conrad was a widow, and stood
sponsor with Henrich Schever at the last baptism.
Jacob Berringer and Gertrout Schneider had children bap-
tized in the Rhinebeck German Reformed Church, as follows :
Conrad, September 14, 1741 ; Petrus, March 11, 1750; Wilhelm,
November 20, 1753 ; Jacobus, July 4, 1756. Frederick Ber-
ringer and Margaret Zufeldt had children baptized in the same
church, as follows: Elizabeth, September 16, 1744; Jacob,
October 12, 1746; Philip, April 24, 1753 ; Anna Maria, Decem-
ber 7, 1755 ; Christina, August 27, 1758.
Henrich Berringer and Elizabeth Best had children as fol-
lows : Conrad, married January 23, 1763, Margaretha, daughter
of Zacharias Schmidt; Elizabeth, baptized October 14, 1744;
married, April 4, 1763, Petrus, son of Zacharias Schmidt ; Hen-
rich, baptized April 26, 1747, married ist, January 19, 1772,
Sarah Boehm ; 2d, Anna Gerges ; Hannah, married Conrad Fin-
ger ; Catharina, baptized October 26, 1755, married Jacob Moul ;
Helena, baptized September 24, 1758, married Abram J. Kip ;
Jacob, baptized May 13, 1761 ; George, born March 19, 1763,
married, 1st, December 14, 1787, Anna Maria Snyder ; 2d, July
3, 1808, Catharine Ackert ; Johannes married Elsjen Blass.
Henrich Berringer and Sarah Boehm had children as fol-
lows : Elizabeth, baptized February 14, 1773; Rebecca, bap-
tized December 4, 1774; Jacob, baptized April 27, 1777;
Catharina, baptized May 30, 1779; Annatjen, baptized July 8,
1781 ; Johannes, baptized March 6, 1785 ; married Maria Else-
ver; Sarah, baptized July 19, 1789, married Philip Kip; Jere-
mias, baptized December 30, 1795. By his second wife Henrich
Berringer had one child, Martin, baptized November 30, 1800.
George Berringer and Anna Maria Snyder had children, as
192 - RHINEBECK GENEALOGY.
follows: Jeremias, baptized August 3, 1788; Elizabeth, bap-
tized March 6, 1791 ; Catharina, baptized October 6, 1795 ;
married Daniel Cookingham ; John, born August 18, 1793, mar-
ried Sallie Bennett (died leaving one child, a son, George) ; Elias,
baptized December 6, 1798, married Maria Shoemaker; Maria.
By his second wife the children were, Ephraim and Julia. Anna
Maria Snyder, first wife of George Barringer, died March 3, 1808 ;
Catharine Ackert, his second wife, died March 24, 1843 ; he died
August 28, 1849.
THE WELCH FAMILY.
This family came into Rhinebeck, probably from Kingston'
in about 1740. Their first residence, we are told, was in a
house at the corner, now occupied by the residence of Guernsey
Crandall. Jan Welsch and his wife, Margareta Maklean are
found on the records of the Reformed Dutch Church in 1742.'
The names might be those of people of Irish descent, and yet
they are known here only as people of Holland, or Low Dutch
extraction ; and they were connected from their first appearance
in the town with the Dutch Reformed Church. They had a son,
Jermias, baptized in this church on November 7, 1742; Abra-
ham, October 7, 1744; Cornelia, or Cornelius, June 13, 1747;
Benjamin, September 23, 1750. After 1760 we find a number
of the name in our old church records. Whether they were all
sons of Jan Welsch and Margareta Maklean, or whether some
were his brothers, we are not certain. We find Jan Welsch, Jr.,
with Annatjen Van Vredenburgh for a wife, having a son John,
baptized November 29, 1761 ; and we have found that this
baby, in time, became the well known deacon and collector,
John Welch, whose wife was Annatjen Van Wagenen, and
whose children were as follows: John, baptized July 15, 1787 ;
Annatjen, born February 12, 1789; Benjamin, born October 2,
1793; James, born December 13, 1795; Barent, born June i,
1800; Margaret, born March i, 1803 ; Peter, born March 2, 1808 ;
Deacon John Welsch died December 8, 1753; his wife, born
February 27, 1768, died July 1 1, 1847 ^ ^^^ ^"'is children are now
also all dead.
Besides the Deacon's father, we find that there was a Wil-
liam Welsch and a Samuel Welsch whose wives were Van Vre-
THE SNYDER FAMILY. I93
denburghs. They were probably three brothers with sisters
for wives. There was an Abraham Welsch with Annatjen
Westphal, and a CorneHus Welsch with Leah Westphal for a
wife. They were probably also brothers with sisters for wives.
We think the Abraham had a former wife of the name of
Elizabeth Teal ; and the Cornelius, a second wife of the name
Annatjen Schmidt. But they and their children have long
since left the world, and there is nobody left able to correct us
if we have made a mistake ; and we will indulge in no further
speculations.
THE SNYDER FAMILY.
This name is German, and Schneider in all the old church
records. There were no taxable Schneiders in Rhinebeck in
1723. They were, therefore, not among the High Butchers for
whom the tract called Rhinebeck was laid out. In a census taken
in 1740, there were two — Johannes P. and Christovel. The tradi-
tion among the descendants of George Schneider and Catharina
Schmidt is, that he was a native German, and had attained to
manhood when he came to Rhinebeck. He wrote a good hand,
and left other evidence that he had received a better education
than fell to the lot of his neighbors, who had had their birth
and schooling in America. He joined the Rhinebeck German
Reformed Church by letter, December 21, 1755, which shows
that he had had a church membership in a former place of resi-
dence. There is no evidence that he had either father, mother
or brother in this country ; Anna Margretha Schneider, the
wife of Wilhelm Peter Wallis, may have been his sister.
He married January 8, 1760, and, we are told, soon after
settled on the farm which, in the memory of many people still
living, was the property of his son. Doctor Peter Snyder, and is
now the property of Edgar Haynes. His marriage record says
he was the son of Johan Ernest Schneider, a name not found
in any of our records. His descendants, in the first generation,
will be found in the family record of Zacharias Schmidt. His
son, Zacharias, begat John Z. Snyder, and John Z. Snyder be-
gat Philip Snyder, the Agricultural Editor of the Philadelphia
Press.
194 RHINEBECK GENEALOGY.
THE ACKERT FAMILY.
These people are Eckerts in all the old church records.
They came into the town at a very early date, and pretty cer-
tainly with the Palatines who fonnded Rhinebeck. Adam Eck"
ert's name is found among the people assessed in the North
Ward in 1723. He was doubtless the first occupant of Abra-
ham Brown's old stone house, built in 1719.
Johan George Eckert and Anna Catharine Eberts, his wife,
had a daughter, Maria Barbara, baptized in the Rhinebeck Ger-
man Reformed Church in 1731 ; a son, Johan Adam, May 22,
1739; a son, Johan Peter, September 14, 1741. At the first of
these baptisms the sponsors were Johan David Eckert and
Maria Barbara Eckert ; at the second, Adam Eckert and Anna
Eckert ; at the third, Adam Dipple and Catharina Eckert, his
wife. We have thus Eckert men and women on the old church
records between 1731 and 1741. Whether they were all descen-
dants from Adam, who built Abraham Brown's house, we are
not prepared to say. Nicklaus Eckard was in Queensbury, one
of the German camps in Columbia County, N. Y., in 171 1, and
may have been father or brother to Adam. Of Martinus Eck-
ert, whose wife was Salome Escher, we are told his father lived
somewhere near Henry Schryver's, and had seven sons and one
daughter, the sons being Solomon, John, Jacob, George, Adam>
Peter and Martinus. These were all men in the prime of life at
the outbreak of the Revolutionary War, and two or three of
these, loyal to the king, entered the British army. Martinus,
who, with his worthy family, lived and died in Rhinebeck, was
doubtless a patriot. We have his record as follows :
Martinus Eckert married Solome Escher, daughter of Jo-
hannes Escher and Sophia Seger, and had children as follows :
Henry, moved to Ulster County ; John M., married Catharine
Progue ; Peter M., married Wager ; Maria, married Martin
G. Ackert ; Catherine, married, first, Progue ; second, Hen-
ry Norris ; Jacob M., born April 29, 1783, married November 6,
1802 ; Margaret Prougue, born October 27, 1785,
Jacob M. Ackert and Margaret Progue had children as
follows: Henry, born May 8, 1804, died 1806; L)'dia Caroline,
born December 23, 1808, died 1856; Jacob Henry, born Febru-
THE PULTZ FAMILY. I95
ary 7, 1809; Martin Adam, born December 16, 181 1 ; Philip An-
drew, born November 15, 1813, died 1856. The father of this
family died May 19, 1875 ; the mother died July 21, i860.
Jacob H. Ackert married Lydia Maria Moor, August 29,
1829. They had children as follows : Philip Jacob, born Febru-
ary 5, 1832 ; Regina Moor, born March 16, 1838; Hon. Alfred
Theodore, of New York City, born April 15, 1840.
Jacob M. Ackert married at nineteen years of age. At the
organization of the public schools in the State of New York, in
1805, he became a school teacher. In 1808 he was captain of
Governor Morgan Lewis's sloop Julia, sailing from the governor's
dock in Rhinebeck — called by him Wurtemberg, and others
Wittenburg Landing — to New York. He was captain of the
Julia until 1812, and we are told he sailed a sloop from the
Rhinebeck State Dock in 18 19. Wurtemberg Landing is now
Kelly's Dock. It has not been a public landing place for freight
or passengers in fifty years,
THE PULTZ FAlVnLV,
This name in the old records is differently spelled by differ,
ent ministers. An old family record spells it Poltz, Dominie
Mancius spells it Pols, and Dominie Cock, Boltz, Johann Mi-
chael, the first of the name, married Barbara Guckenheim, May
10, 1738. He was born July 12, 171 1, and died July 12, 1796.
She died January 23, 1785, after she had been his wife for forty-
six years. We are not told when she was born. They were
doubtless both of German birth. They had children as follows:
Michael, born December 16, 1739, baptized by preacher Schalter
(Spaller ?) in the Rhinebeck Lutheran Church, married Margaret
Dederick ; George, born December ij, 1740, baptized in the
Rhinebeck Reformed Church, married Maria Ring ; Bastian,
born February 22, 1742, baptized in the Rhinebeck Reformed
Church, married Margaret Escher; Anna, born August 3, 1743,
baptized in the Rhinebeck Lutheran Church, died June 17, 1766 ;
Gertrude, born March 7, 1744, baptized in the Rhinebeck Re-
formed Church, married George Freleigh ; Christina, born De-
cember I, 1745, baptized in the Rhinebeck Lutheran Church,
married George Adam Schuck, and had children — Anna, Petrus,
196 RHINEBECK GENEALOGY.
George (father to Sheridan Shook, of New York), Jacob, Gert-
jen, Johannes, Catharina — Christoffel, born August 6, 1747,
baptized in the Rhinebeck Lutheran Church, died unmarried ;
Catharina, born November 7, 1749, baptized in the Rhine-
beck Lutheran Church, died, unmarried, October 23, 1769;^
DeWitt, born February 10, 1771, baptized in the Rhinebeck
Lutheran Church; Daniel, bom January 22, 1754, baptized
in the Rhinebeck Lutheran Church, married Maria Typpel ; Jo-
hannes, born April 30, 1755, married Berbel Marquat, and had
children as follows (Hannah, Peter, Anna, Catharina, David,
William, George, Frederick, Jacob, Philip, John); Barbara, born
1756, baptized in Rhinebeck, in the Stadtsburgh Church, mar-
ried Johannes Ring. The family record of these births names
the signs of the Zodiac under which they were born, and the
last brings to our knowledge two important historical facts —
that there was a church at Staatsburgh, and that Staatsburgh
was in Rhinebeck.
THE ASHER FAMILY.
This name is Escher in the old records. The family came
into the town in 1739, and thus nearly, if not quite, simultane-
ously with the Pultzes and Cookinghams. There is a tradition
in the family that Johannes Escher, the son of George Adam
Escher and his wife, Maria Angenise Betz, was born on ship-
board, October 15, 1739, when his father and mother were on
their way to America from Germany. His sister, Catherina,
was born February 15, 1742, and baptized by Dominie Weiss
in the Rhinebeck German Reformed Church, March 2, 1742.
Johannes Escher married Sophia Seger, and they were doubt-
less the parents of Margaretha Escher who married Bastian
Poltz, of Maria Escher who married Johan Christoffel Diel, of
Salome Escher who married Martinus Eckert, of Johannes and
Adam Escher.
Adam, son of Johannes Escher and Sophia Seger, born
April 12, 1773, married, June 28, 1796, Anna Fraleigh, born
June 28, 1777. They had children as follows: George, bom
February 26, 1797, died June 15, 1815 ; Andrew, born August
II, 1799, died September 14, 1809; Jacob, born December 3,
THE STREIT FAMILY. I97
1801 ; John Michael, bom September 5, 1813 ; Anna Maria,
born August 6, 1816 ; Gertrude, born July 16, 1820, died March
29, 1829. Adam Asher, the father of this family, died April 27,
1821 ; Anna Fraleigh, the mother, died May 2, 1827.
Jacob Asher, married, January 7, 1829, Ellen Ostrom ; born
April 30, 1809. They had children as follows: Saradah Emily,
born February 20, 1830, married George Van Steenburgh, died
July 21, 1855 ; Lewis Alvara, born October 13, 1831, married
Emeline Eckert January 22, 1857; John Rensselaer, born Feb-
ruary 27, 1834, married Mary Wolcott July 31, 1862, died
March 5, 1879; Jane Ann, born September 20, 1836, married
Stephen Cramer January 2, i860 ; Delia Frances, born July 23,
1838, married William H. Johnson, September 28, 1858, died
July 16, 1870; J. Howard, j^born December 27, 1840, married
May 21, 1872, Olivia Welch ; Augustus F., born November ii>
1 85 1. Fat Jicr died April 28, i860; nwtJier, February 18, 1879.
John Michael Asher married December 3, 1840, Delia Ca;"-
oline Ostrom ; born January 4, 1820. They had children as fol-
lows : Catharine Emeline, born December 26, 1841 ; married
March 26 1872, William H. Johnson. George Livingston, born
September 24, 1843 ; married October 2, 1876, Catharine Sleight.
Anna Maria, born October 17, 1845; married June 2, 1874,
John C. Brown. Franklin Ostrom, born November 13, 1847.
Mary Ellen, born November 3, 1849; married, May 23, 1871,
Fenwick W. Slauson. Delia Caroline, born February 26, 1852;
died December 4, 1868. Herman Augustus, born November 12,
1855. Emma Gertrude, born November 13, 1857. Mother died
May 1 , 1 863 ; father, October, 21,1 866.
Anna Maria Asher married Frederick Uhl. This is all we
know of her.
Gertrude Asher died March 29, 1829.
John Asher, brother of Adam, born December 30, 1769,
married the daughter of Michal Pultz, and died we do not know
when. His son, Peter, born December 14, 1793, married Rachel
Dederick, sister to Jacob Dederick, who married Jane Scott.
THE STREIT FAMILY.
The tradition in this family is that the first of the name
came from Germany, and settled on a place called Kiskatami
198 ■ RHINEBECK GENEALOGY.
Nisje, northwest of Catskill. Henry Beekman, the elder, bought
this land of the Indians about the year 1700, and petitioned the
government unsuccessfully for a patent several times before his
death. In 1719 a patent therefor was obtained by Henry
Beekman, the son, and his brother-in-law, Gilbert Livingston,
the parcel containing 2,300 acres. Streit had a farm on this
tract. We are not told at what date. He married a lady of
the neighborhood named Moul. He sold this farm, and bought
one at Rhinebeck.
Frederick Streit and his wife, Catherine Maul, had a daugh-
ter, Christina, baptized in the German Reformed Church by
Dominie Mancius, October i, 1739; a son, Frederick, March 2,
1742, and a son, Ludowick, April 7, 1745. This Frederick Streit
either came into Rhinebeck with brothers and sisters, or children
of marriageable age. Johannes Bender and his wife, Magdalena
Streid, had their son, Hans Velde, baptized March 2, 1742, and
Jury Streid and Elizabeth Trumbour were sponsors at a Maul
baptism in the same year. The Frederick Streid, born March 2,
1742, and married, February 7, 1762, Catharina, the daughter of
Henrich Bender and Catharina Boetzer, had a child baptized as
follows: Frederick, June 19, 1765. After this date these parties
disappear from the record. On October 9, 1768, we find Fred-
erick Streit with Elizabeth Rauh for a jvife. Was it the same
man with a second wife ? On November 2, 1785, Frederick,
probably son of Frederick Streit and Catherine Bender, with
his wife, Catherine Mohr, have a son, Philip, baptized ; on April
24, 1785, a son, Ludwig ; on June 7, 1789, a daughter, Anna.
When Frederick Streit and his wife. Catharina Maul, came
into Rhinebeck, they either came in with a family of Mauls, or
found them here. Johannes Maul, with Elizabeth Tromboor for
a wife, and Johannes Tromboor, with Elizabeth Maul for a wife,
were here in 1738.
THE CRAMER FAMILY.
Johan Nicholas Cramer was born January 2, 1743. He
joined the German Reformed Church at Rhinebeck, April 28,
1 76 1. On the 26th of December, 1769, he married Elizabeth
Typpel, born 1752. They had children born as follows: Catha
THE FULTON FAMILY. I99
rine, October 16, 1770; Christina, 1772; Maria, July 2, 1774;
Leah, January 19, 1776; Jacob, November 22, 1777; Jacob,
October 26, 1778 ; John, September 11, 1780; Lany, August 29,
1782; Ehzabeth, August 24, 1784; Peter, January 12, 1788;
Adam, February 10, 1790; Anna, January i, 1792. Johan Nich-
olas Cramer married, for a second wife, Anna Bonesteel, born
January 27, 1752. He died October 18, 1806; his first wife,
March 9, 1795 ; his second. May 30, 1840.
THE TETOR FAMILY.
This is one of the High Dutch families for whom Henry
Beekman laid out the lands of Rhinebeck. Their lands bounded
on those of Hans Michael Wegile, now the property of William
Lown. Frederick Zipperly had married the daughter of Hans
Michael Wegile, and this was the channel through which the
lands of the latter came into the Zipperly family. The name
Tetor is differently spelled by different ministers, and often by
the same man ; and we think in Rhinebeck it became Tator.
We find Henrich Deder, with Catharina Bender for a wife, in
1742. They had children baptized in the Rhinebeck German
Reformed Church as follows: Johannes, March 2, 1742; Zach-
arias, October 2, 1743; Elizabeth, April 25, 1747 ; Abraham,
May 15, 1751 ; Henrich, April 21, 1753; Catharina, February 15,
1755 ; Wilhelmus, April 8, 1757; they had a daughter, Margaret,
married to Jacob Thomas, whose baptism w^e miss.
THE FULTON FAMILY.
John Fulton, an Irishman, seems to have come to Rhinebeck
about 1770, and he seems to have come alone. He married
Elizabeth Tetor. They had children baptized as follows : Cath-
arine, August 30, 1772; Isabella, May 12, 1774; Henry, Febru-
ary 5, 1776; John, March 29, 1778; Ephraim, June i, 1783;
David, whose record we miss.
Isabilla Fulton became the wife of John Martin, and thus
the mother of the Hon. Michael S. Martin. Hon. Augustus
Martin, Ed. Martin and Joseph Martin, Esqs., and others of
Red Hook.
200 RHINEBECK GENEALOGY.
THE VAN ETTEN FAMILY.
A gentleman who has looked into the history of Ulster
County, informs us that on page 117, it says of the Van Etten
family : " The Knickerbocker ancestor of this family was drawn
to New York and settled at Rhinebeck between 1630 and 1633 ;
for family tradition assigns him a large tract of land in that lo-
cality."
The writer of this history of Ulster County, thus puts set-
tlers in Rhinebeck sixteen years in advance of Peter A. Jay, and
thus commits a still more egregious mistake. The Van Ettens
were brought into Rhinebeck by Henry Beekman, the second,
probably in 1721. In this year he sold to Jacobus Van Etten,
cordwainer, of Hurly, Ulster County, nearly four hundred acres
of land, "computed to be about four miles east of Hudson's
river," for one hundred pounds, subject to an annual quit rent
of three shillings a year. The land was bounded on one side
by lands on Crum Elbow Creek, sold to William Traphagen by
said Beekman in 1719. The tradition of the family here is that
Beekman disposed of this land at a small price subject to a nom-
inal rent, one hundred acres for each one of four sons, to tempt
them back from the river, in the expectation that others would
follow. This Jacobus Van Etten was probably the same person
who bought number one of the Gerrit Artsen & Co.'s patent
from Lawrence Osterhout in 1741. If he had four sons at the
time of this purchase, he added to their number afterwards ; and
he had a daughter, Annatjen, who married Gysbert Westfall ; a
daughter, Margreta, who married Johannes Kip ; a daughter,
Catharina, who married Frans Kool ; a danghter, Helegond, who
married Jan Maris. He had a son, Jan, who married Rachel
Westfall ; a son. Jacobus, who married Margreta Kool ; a son,
Mathew, born 1722, who married Neeltje Van Wagenen ; a son,
Isaac, who, we think, never married ; and we think there were
other sons.
There is a Peter Van Etten in the list of tax-payers in the
ward in 1723 ; and we find a Johannes de Hoges Van Etten on
the records of the German Reformed Church in 1730, with Re-
becca Ostrander for a wife. The former might have been a son
of Jacobus ; the latter could not. They may have been brothers.
THE MOOR FAMILY. 201
but whoever they were, there were no Van Etten freeholders in
Rhinebeck in 1714. If any people of the name settled in this re-
gion in 1630, they were certainly so thoroughly in the wilderness
of the New World and so far from the feeble garrisons at New
York and Albany, that they were probably slain by the Indians
and devoured by the bears and wolves seventy years before any
other white people settled on the soil of Rhinebeck.
THE MOOR FAMILY.
Henrich Moor and his wife were among the Palatines who
settled in the West Camp, in Ulster County, N. Y., in 17 10.
There were thus people of the name of Moor among the
Palatines, and it is possible all the people of the name in Red
Hook and Rhinebeck, and always regarded as people of
German origin, were descended from this pair.
The oldest Moor homestead of which we have knowledge
is the old stone house near the Montgomery Place gate, now
the property of Mrs. Aspinwall. Phillippus Moor, with Chris-
tina Lambert for a wife, appears in the records of the Rhinebeck
German Reformed Church under the date of April 5, 1730.
We think these were the parents of Andrew Moor, whose wife
was Barbel Ham ; of Phillippus Henrich Moor, whose wife was
Engel Dederick ; of Wilhelm Moor, whose wife was Anna Bar.
bara Dederick ; of George Moor, whose wife was Phillipina
Barnhardt ; of Christian Moor, whose wife was Christina Sil-
bernagel ; and of Michael Moor, whose wife was Catharina
Klum.
A record placed in our hands by a Moor descendant says :
" Frederick, Philip, Christopher, Jacob, John, Peter and proba-
bly others were the children of the first settlers of the name.''
We think they were the children of Phillippus Henrich Moor and
Engel Dederick, and, therefore, not of the first settlers of the
name by two generations.
Phillip Mohr (Dominie- Cock's spelling) was married to
Anna Bender October 10, 1774; and we think Johannes Mohr,
whose wife was Elizabeth Dederick ; Christian Mohr, whose wife
was Regina Schop ; Jacob Mohr, whose wife was Anna Shuck,
and Peter Mohr, whose wife was Christina Bender, were his
brothers.
202 RHINEBECK GENEALOGY,
Petrus Moor, baptized November 27, 1743, married, Decem-
ber 16, 1770, Christina Bender. They had children as follows;
Catharine, baptized July 4, 1773, married Jacob Moor; Henry,
baptized March 12, 1775, married Gertrude Shook; Peter, bap-
tized May II, 1777, married Anna Maria Weitman ; William,
baptized April 4, 1779, married Lewis; Philip P., born
March 4, 1781, married, May 23, 1808, Anna Maria Ring, born
may i, 1785 ; Anna, baptized June i, 1783, married Henry Ben-
ner; Zachariah, baptized August 4, 1785, married Anna Feller;
Andrew, baptized September 23, 1787, married Barthola-
mew ; Nicholas, baptized March 14, 1790, married Anna Pitcher;
Garret, married Lena Row.
Philip P. Moor and Anna Maria Ring had children as fol-
lows : Julia Anna, born May 2, 1803, married Frederick Traver';
Katy Louisa, born March i, 1807, married Frederick Burger;
Lydia Maria, born March 4, 1809, married August 29, 1829,
Jacob H. Ackert ; Gertrude Christina, born February 20, i8i2,
married, in 1829, Peter Snyder ; Barbara Caroline, born Novem-
ber 22, 1814, married, first, Rowland Traver ; second, John H.
Rikert ; Philip Henry, born March 21, 1817, married Sarah
Traver; Lucinda, born May 17, 18 19, married Ephraim W.
Pultz ; John William, born June 21, 1831, married Julia Pells;
Alfred Lewis, born August 18, 1823, married Margaret Schultz.
Philip P. Moor died April 15, 1856; Anna Maria Ring, his
wife, died March 19, 1857. They were thrifty people. Their
children all had a good start in the world ; all have kept a bal-
ance in their favor in their reckoning with the world ; and all
are thus among our most highly-respected and trusted people.
THE STAATS FAMILV.
Johannes Staats, with Catharina Pister for a wife, appeared
in the records of the Rhinebeck German Reformed Church at
an early date. We are not able to trace a relationship between
him and the Joachim Staats who purchased from Major Schuy-
ler one-fourth of his Magdalene Island patent ; and yet we pre-
sume there was a relationship. He was probably the first owner
of the Staats homestead in Red Hook. Their children were
as follows :
BASTIAN brown's FAMILY. 203
Philip, baptized October 2, 1739, married, January 7, 1765,
Anna Maria Bender, and settled in Germantown, Columbia
County; Johannes, baptized March 14, 1742, married Lena,
daughter of the Lutheran minister — Johan Frederick Ries ;
Catharina, baptized April 7, 1745 ; Henrich, baptized October
6, 1747 ; Elizabeth, baptized April 24, 1753 ; Petrus, baptized
May 8, 1757; Anna Margreda, baptized August 4, 1759, prob-
ably married Nicholas Bonesteel, baptized May 26, 1754, and
probably settled on the post-road, in the old house, near Red
Hook, known as the Bonesteel Tavern.
Henry Staats, only son, we think, of Johannes Staats and
Lena Ries, married Christina, daughter of Abraham Srtaat and
Christina Schuck, born June 14, 1802. They had children as
follows :
Abraham, born June 25, 1823 ; Lizee, born January 21, 1826;
Egbert, born May 30, 1828 ; Almetia, born February 8, 1831 ;
Almeria, born November 30, 1834.
Henry Staats was, during his life, the owner of a dozen or
more large farms in Red Hook and other places, by purchase,
and was a man of energy, influence and wealth ; but a generous
and confiding disposition toward his sons, who had not inherit-
ed his faculty for making and saving money, had reduced his
estate at his death.
BASTIAN brown's FAMILY.
Heerman Braun, with his wife (whose maiden name it is
assumed was Magdalena Hofman), and three children — viz.,
Bastian, John and Peter — came to America from Holland be-
tween 1730 and 1737. The tradition of the family is that they
were driven from England to Holland by religious persecution.
Heerman Brown's first appearance in the records of Rhinebeck
was as sponsor, with Maria Magdalena Hofman, at the baptism
of Maria Magdalena, daughter of Henrich Meyer and his wife,
Lisbeth Monk, in the Rhinebeck German Reformed Church,
May II, 1738. He leased a tract of land of Col. Henry Beek-
man in the precinct of Rhinebeck, which included the Quick
meadow, now the property of Patrick Halley, on the Post road,
one-fourth of a mile north of the 96th milestone. On this he
204 RHINEBECK GENEALOGY.
built a log house— his first residence. In 1753 he built the
west half of the present stone house ; in 1763 he added the east
part and basement. In 175 1 he was a widower, and married
the Widow Catharine Kissaler. There is no record of issue
from this marriage.
On the 2 1st of February, 1767, Bastian, son of Heerman
Brown, married Margaret Schultz, daughter of Christian Otto
Schultz, by whom he had three children — viz.: Helena, baptized
December 13, 1767, died young; Peter, born 1770, married
Elenor, daughter of Major John Paulding; John, born 1773,
married Lydia, daughter of Conrad Lasher.
Peter Brown and Elenor Paulding had children as follows:
Sebastian, John, Margaret, William, Edwin, Abigail. Peter
Brown died 1841.
John Brown and Lydia Lasher had children as follows •
Margaret, Maria, Caroline, Abraham, Julia, Howard, Emeline,
Cerelia. John Brown died 1824.
Sebastian, oldest son of Peter Brown and Elenor Paulding,
married Eliza, daughter of Anthony Bard, by whom he had
children as follows: Peter, born October 18, 1820, married Kitty-
Green ; Helen, born September 11, 1822 ; Emily, born January
II, 1825 ; Eliza, born May 13, i827; Lewis, born March 2, 1830;
Edwin, born December 21, 1833; John C, born February 12,
1837 ; Henry Harrison, born January 26, 1840.
A RED HOOK WILSON FAMILY.
John, James, Daniel and Robert Wilson were four brothers
who settled in the vicinity of Upper Red Hook before 1770.
John married Elizabeth, and James married Anna Kuhn, sisters,
daughters of Simon Kuhn and his wife, Catharine Linck. Dan.
ie) married Mary Hamilton, and Robert married Catharine WiL
sey. Ruth Wilson, wife of Guy Magill, 1768, was probably a
sister. These Wilsons were Irish, or people of Irish descent.
John Wilson and Elizabeth Kuhn had children as follows:
Catharine, baptized March 27, 1774, married Col. Philip Pitcher,
of Upper Red Hook; Martha, baptized October 17, 1776, mar;
ried first, Abraham A. Kip, second, Spencer Whiting ; Elizabeth,
baptized October 3, 1779, married Joseph Cox; John, baptized
A RED HOOK WILSON FAMILY." 205
April 7, 1782, died unmarried; Hannah, born 1784, married^
1804, John Drury, of Rhinebeck Flats.
John Wilson died before 1797, and his widow, Elizabeth
Kuhn, married John A. Kip. John Wilson, the son, gave his
name to his nephew. Judge John Wilson Drury, of Chicago,
Illinois.
Martha Wilson and Abraham A. Kip had children as fol-
lows : Ann Eliza, married Jacob B. Van Steenburgh, and had a
number of children (of whom John Alfred Van Steenburgh, of
Rhinebeck, is one); William, twin to Ann Eliza; Ralph ; John
G. ; Hellen.
The history of the old " Tamany Hall " hotel stand finds
John Wilson and his family in Rhinebeck immediately after the
close of the Revolutionary War. In 1746, Henry Beekman gave
a life-lease to Jacob .Van Ostrander, linen weaver, for two acres
of land bounded and described as follows: '' Lying on the west-
erly side of a plain, easterly to the King's road that leads from
the said Beekman's gristmill to Rynbeek ; northerly to the lot
of ground belonging to Peter Van Ette ; westward to the land
of Arent Traphage, deceased, by a line N. 21^ 45' W. ; and so
southerly so far as to make this lot of ground to contain two
acres, or thereabout." The rent reserved was " one couple of
fat hens " per year, for five years ; after that, twenty shillings
per year. It was, therefore, evidently a lease for land in a prim,
itive state.
Jacob Ostrander sold the lease to Johan Christover Arm-
burster, tanner, in 1753, for ^21. Armburster sold it, as a tav-
ern keeper, to William Gillant, tavern keeper, in 1762, for ;^I35.
It is probable, from the increase in price, the old stone house
was built by Armburster, between 1753 and 1762. William
Gillant sold the property, as a tavern keeper, to J. Jury Cremer,
tailor, in 1763, for ;^I45. J. Jury Cremer sold it, as a tavern
keeper, to Henry Schopp, saddle maker, in 1767, for ;^200.
Henry Schopp sold it, as a saddler, to Johannes Van Steenburgh,
gunsmith, in 1769, for i^200. Johannes Van Steenburgh sold
it, as a gunsmith, to David Van Ness, merchant, in 1783, for
^300. David Van Ness sold it to John Wilson, in 1784, for
2o6 ^ RHINEBECK GENEALOGY.
John Wilson thus came into Rhinebeck in 1784, the year in
which his daughter, Hannah, the wife of John Dury, was born.
The property, in 1798, was in the possession of John A. Kip,
Mrs. John Wilson's second husband. In 1809, Janet Montgom-
ery gave him a lease of it, to continue during the life of John G.,
the son of his brother, Abraham A. Kip, a lad eight years of
age.
ABRAHAM R. KIP.
Abraham R. Kip was the grandson of Jacob Kip, the pat-
entee, by his son, Roeloff. He was baptized October 22, 1738.
He married Lena, the daughter of Hans Jury Tremper and his
wife, Susanna Typpel. They had children as follows : Roelof,
baptized August 31, 1761 ; Hans Jury, baptized April 15, 1764;
Abraham, baptized July 13, 1766, married Martha Wilson ; Lena^
baptized August 14, 1768 ;■ Sarah, baptized October 28, 1773 ;
Jacob, baptized October 29, 1775 ; Catharina, baptized October
28, 1781, married, January 11, 1807, Capt. John W. Pitcher, of
Upper Red Hook. Abraham R. Kip died February ii, 1830,
aged ninety-one years ; his wife, Hellena Tremper, died March
24, 1827, aged eighty-six years.
THE TRAPHAGEN FAMHA'.
William Traphagen bought a small tract of land from Hen-
ry Beekman, in 1706, a larger one in 17 10, which included part
of the Hager, and, we think, all of the Teller farm, and all the
land south of the river road, west of the post road and south to
Landsman's Kill; and a tract, in 1719, on Crum Elbow Creek,
named in the deed to Jacobus Van Etten in 1721. The old
stone house known as the " Old States Prison," on the Flats,
was doubtless his residence, and probably built by him soon
after 1810. He died in 1736, and left three children: Giesje,
who married, October 3, "1731, Isaac Kool ; Arent, who married
August 26, 1739, Leah Van Etten ; and William, who married
we do not know whom. Arent died before 1746, and William
served as precinct clerk from 1749 to 1754. The wives of Peter
and Cornelius Radcliff were doubtless the daughters of one or
both of these men.
THE RED HOOK VAN NESS FAMILY. 20/
THE RADCLIFF FAMILY.
The Radcliffs, like the Van Nesses, make their first appear-
ance in the records of the Camp, or Germantown German Re-
formed Church. Joachem Radcliff's wife, Hellitje Hogeboom,
was probably sister to William Van Ness's wife, Gertroy Hoge.
boom. Joachem Radcliff and Hellitje Hogeboom were pretty
certainly parents to all the following children :
Petrus, baptized May 19, 1741, married Catharina Trapha-
gen ; Johannes, married Neeltjen Schermerhorn ; Elizabeth, bap-
tized 1746; Joachem, baptized 1748; Hellitje, married Adam
Bergh ; Cornelius, married Rebecca Traphagen ; Rachel, married
Petrus De Witt ; William, married Sarah Kip ; Jannetjen, mar-
ried Rev. Ego Tonkins Van Hovenburgh. William Radcliff and
Sarah Kip had children baptized in the Rhinebeck German Re-
formed Church, as follows :
Jacob, April 29, 1764; Klaertjen, May 18, 1766; William,
born January 9, 1768 ; John, baptized June 7, 1772 ; Peter, July
3, 1774. These are all in the record before us ; there may have
been more. William Radcliff was one of the most influential
men in the town of Rhinebeck in his day.
THE RED HOOK VAN NESS FAMILY.
These Van Nesses make their first appearance in the records
of the Camp German Reformed Church. We think William
Van Ness and his wife, Gertroy Hogeboom, were the parents
of John Van Ness, whose wife was Jannetje Bradt ; of William
Van Ness, Jr., whose wife was Elizabeth Contyne ; and of David
Van Ness, whose wife was Cornelia Heermance, the sister of
General Martin Heermance, of Rhinebeck.
David Van Ness and Cornelia Heermance had children bap-
tized as follows ; Gertrui, June 30, 1771, married Harry Lyle ;
Jacob, baptized Novembers, 1772; Catharine, July 31, 1774,
married William Radcliff, Jr.; Jannetjen, June 21, 1778, mar-
ried John Radcliff; Wilhelm, March 29, 1784; Cornelia, June
24, 1786, married John J. Close ; Annatjen, November 17, 1787 ;
Maria, October 25, 1789; Catalyna, August 13, 1791 ; David,
April 14, 1798.
David Van Ness built the Punderson House in Upper Red
208 RHINEBECK GENEALOGY.
Hook, before the Revolution, and kept a store in it until after
1790. In 1798 he was General Van Ness, and owned the house
and farm which became the property of Tobias Teller, and now
belong to the heirs of William Chamberlin.
THE WHITEMAN FAMILY.
We learn from a descendant of this family that " about the
year 1722, three brothers, Martinus, Johannes, and Henrich
Weidman, set out from the canton of Zurich, in Switzerland, and
settled in Rhinebeck. The name came to be written here,
Weydman, then Weitman, and subsequently Whiteman. It
imports in the original that the ancestors of these brothers were
shepherds and huntersmen ; and the shield brought to this coun-
tiy by Henrich Weidman, the youngest of the brothers, repre-
sented a hunter, full armed.
" They were all followers of the Reformer, Zwinglius, and
belonged to the German Reformed Church.
" Henrich Weidman, the youngest brother, had received
advantages of education in the free city of Zurich, and came to
be employed for some years as an agent of some of the lands
of Gilbert Livingston, and subsequently of Robert G. Livingston.
About the year 1743 he married Claphena Kuch, at Esopus.
"On the 1st of May, 175 1, Henrich Weydman, then of
Rhinebeck precinct, took from Robert G. Livingston, merchant,
of the city of New York, a lease of the farm situated about two
and a half miles southeasterly from the present village of Red
Hook, which continued in the possession and ownership of his
descendants for a period of one hundred and twenty-five years
thereafter. In 1876, the sons of John Elseffer and Catharine
(Whiteman) ElsefYer conveyed the same to Garret Moore."
The sons and daughters of Henrich Weydman and Cla-
phena, his wife, who attained majority, were as follows : Margret,
married, January 19, 1762, Henrich Schmidt ; Anna, baptized
January 4, 1747, married Hans Felten Schafer, and moved to
Kinderhook ; Elizabeth, baptized October 24, 1748 ; Hans Hen-
rich, baptized August 24, 1750, married, December 14, 1773,
Marytjen Hoff ; Jacob, born 1752, married, 1775, Catharine,
daughter of Frederick Neher; Zacharias, baptized February 15,
THE ELSEFFER FAMILY. 209
1755, married, January 24, 1773, Anneken Ostrander ; Alida*
youngest child, baptized May 27, 1757, married Hans Felten
Bender. (Felten is frequently written " Fallentyne " in the same
church book. Dominie Cock wrote the same name " Felten "
and " Valentyn " at different dates.)
Jacob Weidman and Catharine Neher had children as fol-
lows: Henry, baptized June 27, 1779, married Rebecca Sharp,
third daughter of George Sharp and Rebecca Tedter ; Anna
Maria, baptized September 28, 1782, married Peter P. Moor.
Henry Whiteman and Rebecca Sharp had an only child,
Catharine, baptized August 9, 1799, married, June 6, 1819, John
Elseffer.
John Elseffer and Catharine Whiteman had three sons»
Henry D., Jacob W. and William L., named in the Elseffer
family.
Jacob Whiteman, we are told, " was regarded as a great
rebel by the Tories of the Revolution, and, with Gottlob Martin,
George Sharp, and others, held frequent private council to ad-
\'ance the cause of the Revolutionary army. In 1796 he pur-
chased the fee of the homestead farm before alluded to.
THE ELSEFFER FAMILY.
We learn from a member of this family that the name in the
old country was Elzevir ; in this country, at first Elsever, then
Elsefer, and finally Elseffer. He further informs us that about
the year 1580, Louis Elzever, a German printer, emigrated to
Holland, to escape religious agitations in his native place ; and
soon thereafter " books bearing the imprint of Elzevir appeared."
The name in the original, he says, " had a special significance,
Elze, meaning a province, or anything country ; and Vir mean-
ing///e man ; hence the name imports, the man of the country, or
the representative man of the province." Louis Elzevir, he
says, had seven sons, five following the business of the father,
and becoming distinguished therein, the other two return-
ing to the Highlands of Germany. A descendant of one
of the latter, with his wife and son, Lodiwick, about four years
of age, embarked for America in the year 1738, intending to
seek a home in Rhinebeck, where from thirty to fifty High
2IO RHINEBECK (lENEALOGY.
Dutch families had settled twenty-four years previously. Both
parents died on shipboard, and the ship, in a disabled condi-
tion, nnade the port of Philadelphia instead of New York, the
port of its destination. The boy, Lodiwick, fell to the care of
a half-brother, of the name of Shop, who placed him in school,
and at a suitable age put him to the trade of saddle and harness-
making. Having attained his majority, he left Philadelphia and
settled down to his trade in the ancient village of Rhinebeck,
in the first house north of the German Reformed Church, in
the year 175&.
Lodiwick Elsever, born 1734. married March 21, 1758,
Susanna, daughter of David Reichert, baptized September 14,
1741. They had children as follows : Elizabeth, born October
7, 1759, married George Treber ; George, born June 24, 1771,
married Anna Maria Neher, daughter of Joost Neher, and grand-
daughter of Carl Neher, a prominent man among the first set-
tlers ; Anna Maria, born February 3, 1763 ; Eva, born November
12, 1764, married Frederick Tedter (she dying, Frederick Tedter
married her sister, Anna Maria, for a_ second wife) ; David, born
December 11, 1766, married Elizabeth, daughter of Johannes
Eckert, of Staatsburgh ; Catharine, born May 6, 1769 ; Susanna,
born Jul)' 16, 1772, married David Neher; Rebecca, born March
28, 1774.
George Elsever and Anna Maria Neher had children as fol-
lows : Louis, married Katy Schultz, and moved into the south-
easterly part of Dutchess County ; Maria, married John Barring-
ger, and moved to the city of New York ; Henry, married Lydia
Cookingham, and remained on the old Elsever homestead, which
is still in the possession of his widow and his only child, Eliza
Ann, wife of John H. Cotting ; Susanna, married John L Teats,
of Milan, and has an only child, the wife of William P. Stall;
George, moved to Michigan in the early settlement of that
State ; Eliza, married Nicholas Ostrom, of Rhinebeck.
John Barringerand Maria Elseffer left a daughter, Emeline,
who married John Savage, and resides at Elizabeth, N. J. ; and
a daughter, Sarah, who married John Martyne, and resides at
Plainf^eld, N.J.
David Elsever and Elizabeth Eckert settled on the place
rilK SlIARl' FAMILY. 21 1
now the property of Lewis D. Elseffer, and had children as fol.
lows : Anna Maria, born August 24, 1788, married John N. Bone-
steel ; Susanna, born September 30, 1790, married John P. Me-
sick, of Claverack, Columbia County, N. Y. ; Elizabeth, born
March 10, 1793, is unmarried, and living with her sister, Grace
Elseffer, in Red Hook ; John, born August 24, 1798, married
Catherine Weitman, and became the owner of the old VVeitman
homestead in the town of Red Hook ; Lewis D., born December
16, 1802, married Cornelia Shook, and has an only son, John L.,
who resides with him, on the paternal homestead, the first house
south of the stone church (St. Peter's Lutheran), and thus one
of the farms laid out for the High Butchers by Plenry Beekman,
the patentee, in ancient Rein Beek, before 17 14.
John N. Bonesteel and Anna Maria Elseffer had children
as follows : Margaret E. Atwell, of Burlington, Vt. ; Cath-
arine A. Faure, of New York City; and David N. Bonesteel,
deceased. Mrs. Mary B. Pier, of Staatsburg, is the only daugh-
ter of the latter.
John Elseffer and Catharine Weitman had children as fol.
lows: Henry D., deceased ; Jacob W., counsellor at law at Red
Hook ; and William L., civil engineer in the city of New York.
John Elseffer was a magistrate in the town of Red Hook for
twenty-four consecutive years, and elected a member of the
Legislature of New York of 1843.
THE SHARP FAIVHLV.
The six thousand acres of land (now Germantown, in
Columbia County, N. Y.), bought by Governor Hunter for the
Palatines, of Robert Livingston, in 17 10, were conveyed by the
government to Jacob Sharp and others, in 1724, in trust for
themselves and all the other Palatines willing to remain thereon.
This Jacob Sharp had three children — viz. : Petrus, George and
Catharine.
Petrus Sharp married Eva Schneider, and remained on the
old Germantown homestead. They had seven children — viz. :
Peter, Abraham, Jacob, George P., Eva, Sarah and Maria.
George Sharp married Margaret Tedter, in 1771, and set-
tled in that part of Rhinebeck which is now Red Hook. They
212 RHINEBECK GENEALOGY.
had eight children — viz. : Catharine ; Peter G., baptized May 28,
1775 ; Henry ; George ; John ; Isabella, baptized November 8,
1777 ; Rebecca, baptized February 6, 1780 ; Maria.
Catharine Sharp married Philip Rockerfeller, of German-
town. Their daughter was the mother of the late Gen. Philip
H. Lasher, of Tivoli, and Stephen Lasher, now of Elgin, 111.
Peter, son of Peter Sharp and Eva Schneider, became a
physician, and practiced his profession in Kingston, N. Y.
Abraham, son of Peter Sharp and Eva Schneider, married,
first, Helen C, daughter of Capt. John W. Pitcher, of Upper
Red Hook ; second, Helen C, daughter of John the Baptist, son
of John the Baptist Kip, of Rhinebeck, and thus cousin to his
first wife. By the first wife he had Catharine Eveline, who
married Edwin Knickerbacker, of Madelin ; and Helen C, who
married Abraham Pells, of Kingston. By the second wife he
had Mary L., who married Thomas Little, of Brooklyn, N. Y. ;
Sarah C, who married William Bayles ; and Col. Jacob, who
married the daughter of Gen. Cook. He was a brave and gal-
lant officer in the Union army during the Civil War, and is now
Governor of the Soldier's Ho"me at Milwaukee, Wis. Abra-
ham Sharp commenced business as a merchant at the Old Red
Hook landing, and finally settled as a merchant in Upper Red
Hook Village, where he died.
Jacob, son of Peter Sharp and Eva Schneider, remained at
the old homestead, in Germantown ; George P., his brother,
moved to Kingston, in Ulster County, where he became a hard-
ware merchant in the firm of Sharp & Sahler : Eva, their sister,
married Wessel Ten Broeck, of Kingston, and died without
issue ; Sarah and Maria, the other sisters, settled in Kingston,
and this is all we know of them.
1. Catharine, daughter of George Sharp and Margaret
Tedter, married Mathias Chrysler ; Jacob M. Chrysler, of Lock-
port, N. Y., is a son of this marriage.
2. Peter G., son of George Sharp and Margaret Tedter,
married Jane Kiersted, and settled in Kingston as a merchant,
became a prominent business man, and a man of wealth and
influence.
3. Isabella, daughter of George Sharp and Margaret Tedter
THE BONESTKEL FAMILY. 213
married Abraham Wood, settled first in Schoharie, then in Al-
bany, and finally in New York City. Rebecca Broas, of Jersey
City, is a daughter ; and Abraham W. Kennedy, of New York
City ; Samuel Kennedy, of the Port Warden's office, New York
City ; John Elseffer Kennedy, Deputy Marshal of the Southern
District of New York ; Edward M. Kennedy, of Brooklyn ; and
Henry Whiteman Kennedy, counsellor at law, in New York
City, are grand-children.
4. Rebecca, daughter of George Sharp and Margaret Ted-
ter married Henry Whiteman, of Rhinebeck. Their only daugh-
ter, Catharine, married John Elseffer, whose descendants are
named in the Elseffer family record.
5. Henry, son of George Sharp and Margaret Tedter, mar-
ried Helen Hasbrouck, settled in Kingston as a merchant, be-
came a leading business man, and a man of wealth andinfluence.
Gen. George H. Sharp, now for the second time Speaker of the
State Assembly, is their only son.
6. George, son of George Sharp and Margaret Tedter, set-
tled in New York City, and became the leading member of the
firm of Sharp & Tuttle, in Pearl street. He was a member of
the State Legislature in 1836.
7. John, son of George Sharp and Margaret Tedter, mar-
ried and settled in Schoharie County, New York, where he left
descendants.
8. Maria, daughter of George Sharp and Margaret Tedter,
married Nicholas Bouck, cousin to Governor William C. Bouck ;
settled and left descendants in Schoharie County, New York.
THE BONESTEEL FAMILY.
Nicholas Bonesteel and Anna Margretha Kuhns, his wife,
with some of their children, were among the earliest settlers of
what is now the town of Red Hook, possibly at a period as
early as 17 14. His name is among the people taxed in the
North Ward in 1723, at which time it is believed he held, by
life-lease, the farm bounded northerly by the road leading to
iSarrytown, easterly by the post road, southerly by the Benner
farm, and westerly by the Hans Waldorph farm. A portion of
the village of Red Hook is now on the easterly part of this farm.
214 RHINEBECK GENEALOGY,
We are indebted to a friend for the pedigree of this family
which follows : The first settler, he informs us, had a large fam-
ily of children. Barbel married Michael Simon ; Elizabeth, Bal"
thaser Simon ; Jerusha, Andries Michel ; Nicholas, Jr., Anna Eliz'
abeth Treber; Anna Barbara, Jacob Meyer; John Peter, Eliza-
beth Simon ; Philip, Elizabeth Hagadorn ; Frederick, Catharine
Meyer. In the oldest book of the Rhinebeck Lutheran Church
we have these records : David Bonesteel and Anna Maria, his
wife ; Michael Bonesteel and Elizabeth, his wife ; Jacob Bone-
steel and Elizabeth, his wife. The latter had a son, Michael,
baptized November 22, 1772.
It would be difficult, perhaps impossible, to obtain the
names of all the descendants of this numerous family. Hence
a few have been selected in whose cases the records seem clear-
Nicholas Bonesteel, Jr., who married Anna Elizabeth Treber'
is believed to have been the person who, in the year 1749, was
road-master on the King's highway, from Cole's bridge to the
Hog bridge. Records of their children remain as follows : Anna
Margretha, baptized September 4, 1743; Catharina, baptized
April 7, 1745 ; Elizabeth, born October i, 1750; Nicholas, bap-
tized May 26, 1754 ; Philip, baptized December 21, 1755 ; Hen-
ry, baptized May 8. 1761.
Nicholas Bonesteel, grandson of the first Nicholas, baptized
May 26, 1754, married Eva . Their son, Philip, married
Elizabeth Ray. The daughter of the latter, Maiy Bonesteel,
born in Florida, Montgomery County, New York, October 2,
1790, married Benjamin Wood. The daughter of the latter,
Mary Ann Wood, born at DeReyter, New York, April 22, 181 1,
married the late Hon. Ezra Cornell, March 19, 183 1. He was
born in Westchester County, January 11, 1807. Their son,
Alonzo B. Cornell, is the present Governor of the State of New
York.
Philip Bonesteel, third son of the first Nicholas, whose
wife was Elizabeth Hagedorn, took from Henry Beekman,
October 27, 1774, a perpetual lease of the farm heretofore
mentioned, excepting twelve acres along the post road, This
lease was conveyed by the said Philip Bonesteel to his son-in-
law, Nicholas J. Stickle, and his son, Peter Bonesteel, August
THE BONKSri;EL FAMILY. 21 5
15, 1798, he dying soon after. They conveyed the same farm
to Lemuel Haines, April 21, 1808.
Philip Bonesteel and Elizabeth Hagedorn, his wife, had
children as follows : Philip, married and settled in Woodstock ;
Peter, married Elizabeth Tedter, and moved, in 1803, near to
Bay Quinty, in Upper Canada; Anna, born January 16, 1752,
married Zachariah, son of Carl Neher, prominent in the history
of the Rhinebeck Lutheran Church ; Nicholas, born November
21, 1753, married Margaret Staats, sister of " Hans Staats," and
settled on the farm on the post road between the I02d and 103d
mile stones, in the house known as the Bonesteel tavern, now
owned by Samuel Ten Broeck ; Henry, born February 20, 1762 ;
Jeremiah, baptized May 20, 1767, moved to Stone Arabia,
Montgomery County, N. Y. ; Elizabeth, baptized October 2,
1769; Magdalena, baptized February 28, 1772 ; David, baptized
December 20, 1775, moved to Rensselaer County, N. Y.
Zachariah Neher and Anna Bonesteel left a son, Jeremiah
Neher, who resided many years midway between Red Hook
\'illage and Barrytown. Jeremiah Neher had three daughters,
viz. : Polly, married Peter Lewis, and had one son, John N»
Lewis, of Red Hook ; Anna, married Charles L. Crooke, and
had a daughter, Mary, wife of Hon. James Emott, and a daugh-
ter Cornelia, wife of LeGrand Dodge, Esq. The youngest
daughter married Jacob Lewis, whose son, Charles C. Lewis, re-
sides in the city of New York.
Nicholas Bonesteel and his wife, Margaret Staats, had
children as follows : Philip N., married Alida Van Bramer, and
had three children, viz. : Virgil D., Margaret, and Catharine Har-
rnena : John N., married Maria ElsefTer, and had three children,
viz.: David N., Margaret, and Catharine. Jacob N. married
Gertrude Ring, and had two children, viz. , Margaret, wife of
Marmont Edson, and John N., both of Brooklyn, N. Y. Henry
N., married Helen Miller, and had five children, viz. : Philip H.;
Peter; Delia Eliza, wife of Jacob W. Elseffer, Esq. ; Catharine
Augusta, widow of John Christian, of Minneapolis; and Helen
Louisa, wife of Rensselaer Platner, M. D., of Clermont, N. Y.
Philip N, Bonesteel was a prominent merchant, a magistrate
and post master in Red Hook for many years ; was Colonel of a
2l6 RHINEBECK GENEALOGY.
regiment of cavalry, and for some years a trustee of Hartwick
Seminary. His son, Virgil D., graduated at Yale College, be-
came a lawyer, resided at Poughkeepsie, and held the office of
Surrogate of Dutchess County for four years. The Colonel re-
purchased the old Bonesteel homestead, embracing 210 acres of
land, on the 30th of April, 1823. His children all died without
issue.
THE FRALEIGH FAiMILY.
Stephan Frolich, with a wife, two daughters over nine and
one under eight years of age, was among the Palatines settled
in the West Camp in Ulster County in 17 10. Stephen Froelick
was a freeholder, and the only one of the name in what is now
the town of Rhinebeck, in 1723. He obtained a lease from
Henry Beekman for the farm on the post road, now the proper-
ty of Goertner Fraleigh, a descendant in the sixth generation^
in 1719. We have no doubt he was the person found in the
West Camp in 17 10, and the ancestor of all the Frolichsand Fra.
leighs who have lived and died and are now living in Dutchess
County. He made his will in 1749, in which he released two
children, without naming them, of all their obligations to his
estate, and leaves his property to his wife, Barbara. We find
in the old German Reformed Church records that Catharine
Frolich was the wife of Johannes Weist in 1741 ; Ursula Frolich,
of Marden Burger, in 1745 ; Martinus Frolich, the husband of
Anna Maria Hagedorn in 1756; Petrus Frolich, of Margaretha
Flegeler in 1766 ; Maria Frolech, the wife of Gerhard Dederick
in 1766 ; Henry Frolich, the husband of Margaret Van Lowen
in 1768, and George Frolich, the husband of Gertrude Pultz
in 1770. There are, probably, Frolich records in the Rhinebeck
Lutheran and Flatts Dutch Reformed Church, the books of
which are not now before us. The Staatsburgh in which Do-
minie Hartwick preached and baptized the children was near
the Frolich homestead, and his records are in the Rhinebeck
Lutheran book. Peter Fraleigh became the owner of the farm
at the death of his father, and the graveyard known as Peter
Frolich's took its name from him, and was on the opposite side
of the road from his house. The Bergs, Burgers (Burckhards in
the old records), Frolichs and Van Benschotens and Schryvers
THE I'RALKltill FAMir.Y. 21/
were buried in this ground, and generally without tombstones.
A family record before us says Peter Fraleigh was born
August 15, 1720, died January 26, 1792. Margaret, his wife,
born August 25, 1724, died June 2, 1805. This is not the be-
ginning of the record. We have placed it first because the
first in date. It is preceded by the record of Stephen which
follows, and we are left in doubt whether Peter was father or
elder brother to Stephen.
Stephen Fraleigh, born July 28, 1742, married, October 23,
1764, Maria Van Benschoten. They had issue as follows:
Maria, born April 13, 1765 ; Margaret, born July 22, 1767; Sol-
omon, born December 18, 1768; Peter, born November 10,
1770; Elsjen, born January 26, 1775 ; Lanne, born January 26,
1 78 1, died March 28, 1794. The mother died August 11, 1812,
aged sixty-six years; the father died April 11, 1820, aged seven-
ty-seven years.
Solomon Fraleigh married Christina, daughter of Conrad
Lasher, born March 28, 1770, married, September 5, 1789. They
had issue as follows : Maria, born October 5, 1790 ; Conrad, born
May 27, 1792 ; Peter, born April 25, 1794; Stephen, born No-
vember 12, 1796; Lydia, born April 12, 1799.
Petrus Frolich and his wife, Elizabeth Felder, appear in the
records of the German Reformed Church for the first time on
the 9th of July, 1780. On this day, their son, Johannes, was
baptized by Dominie Cock, the sponsors being Johan Felder
and Anna Maria Streit ; on April 21, 1782, their daughter, Eliz-
abeth, was baptized, ths sponsors being Peter Eckert and Eliza-
beth Frolich; on September 3, 1784, their son, George, was
baptized, the sponsors being Johannes Stickel and Elizabeth
Behm ; on December 3, 1786, their son, Phillippus, was baptized,
the sponsors being Phillippus Felder and Anna Milthaler.
Peter was another son, and Hannah another daughter of this
family. She married John A. Stickle, died January 12, 1850,
aged seventy- four years, and was thus born in 1776. This is
the well-known Red Hook family of Fraleighs, whose ancestor
was doubtless also Stephanus, the first settler of the name.
Peter married Elizabeth Smith ; Johannes married Catharine,
daughter of Henry Tidter, Jr., and his wife, Anna Maria Pros-
2l8 RHINEBECK GENEALOGY.
eus ; Philip married Anna Tidter, sister to Catharine, the wife
of his brother, for a first, and Anna Benner, daughter of Peter
Benner, for a second wife ; George married Catharine Mohr ;
Ehzabeth, we think, married Henry Stall. These men became,
and these sisters married men who became wealthy farmers,
and highly-respected citizens of Red Hook.
THE SCHRYVER FAMILY.
Albtirtus Schriberwas a freeholder, and the only person of
the name, in what is now the town of Rhinebeck, in 1723. He
was, probably, the ancestor of all the Schryvers who have lived
and died and now are living in Dutchess and Ulster Counties,
and possibly of all in the State. He was a German, and doubt-
less, a Palatine. His wife was Eva Lauerman, and their chil-
dren were probably, Christina, wife of Johon Jacob Sickener ;
Elizabeth, wife of Petrus Van Etten ; Nicholas, husband of
Anna Maria Dederick; Martinus, husband of Eva Burkhard ;
Johan Emerich, husband of Elzabeth Burkhard (now Burger);
Petrus, of whose wife we are not certain. A tombstone in the
cemetery of the Reformed Dutch Church says Mrs. Eva Schry-
ver died July 28, 1817, aged Sj years; there is none to the
memory of her husband.
Where the tent of the first Schryver was pitched, we have
not learned. Nicholas Schryver bought of Henry Beekman the
farm now owned by David H. Schryver, a descendant in the fifth
generation, from Alburtus, the first, on the ist of May, 1739.
On the loth of August, 1744, he sold it to his brother, Peter,
for fifty pounds. On the 17th of November, 1770, Peter sold
it to his two sons, Johannes and David for two hundred and
forty pounds. We thus find two sons of Peter. If he had others,
and daughters, we have not found them. Nicholas had a son,
Christian, baptized September 30, 1744, and a daughter, Cath-
arina, October 7, 1747 ; Martin, had a son, David, baptized
September 7, 1766, and a son, Adam, January 28, 1769. These
are in the German Reformed book. There may be others in
the Reformed and Lutheran books which we have not con.
suited.
We find Johannes Schryver with Greetchie Tarpenning for
THE SCHRVVER FAMILY. 219
a wife, having a daughter, Eva, baptized March 4, 1764, and a
daughter, Rachel, August 24, 1766. We find Johannes Schry-
ver again, with Neeltjen Van Benschoten for a wife, having a
daughter Elsjen, baptized August 15, 1773, and a daughter
Maria, July 9, 1775. Whether we have here, two Johannes
Schryvero, or the same man with a second wife, we are not in-
formed ; and whether, being the same, he was the son of Peter,
and had other children, we are not informed. David, the son of
Peter, married Rebecca Pawling, sister to Major John Pawling,
and had children as follows : David, married Hellitje Radcliff,
daughter of Peter Radcliff and Catharina Traphagen ; Henry
died unmarried ; Barney married, first. Miss Pells ; second, Miss
Man ; Peter lived and married in Sullivan County, New York ;
Catharine married Henry Van Aken ; Elizabeth married Henry
Uhl ; Hannah married John Benner; Rebecca married Mathew
Van Etten. David Schryver died May 7, 181 3, aged 65 years ;
his wife died April 13, 1832, aged 92 years.
David D. Schryver and Hellitje Radcliff had children as
follows: William, Allen L., James, Margaret and David H., the
latter retaining the old homestead in a handsome new house,
on the line between Hyde Park and Rhinebeck. Since the pur-
chase by Nicholas Schryver in 1739, the place has never had
any but Schryver owners. David D. Schryver died May 22,
1862, aged 82 years; his wife died February 13, 1848, aged 63
years.
John T. Scrhyver, for many years a prominent and success-
ful businessman in Rhinebeck, was a descendant from Alburtis
Schryver, the Palatine, but through which one of the sons, we
have no positive information. His father was Jacob Schryver,
and his mother a lady of the name of Ten Broeck. He married
Helen Conklin. Their children were Nicholas Van Vranken,
Mathew Van Benschoten, George Washington and Rachel.
Nicholas died unmarried, Mathew married, first, Margaret Tell-
er, second, Miss Sleight ; George married Maria Fellows ;* Ra-
chel married Stephen A. DuBois. Mathew is childless; George
* The ancestors of Mrs. Maria Fellows Schryver on both her farher and moth-
er's side were Palatines. Her maiden name of Fellows, in the old Church records,
is sometimes Veller, generally Feller, and when written by Dominie Cock, always
Felder. It is not long since it became Fellows.
220 RHINEBECK IN THE CIVIL WAR
died leaving four children, one son and three daughters ; Rachel
and her husband are both dead, and have left an only child,
Doctor John C. DuBois, of Hudson, N. Y.
THE TRAVER FAMILY.
The descendants of this old Palatine family are still numer-
ous in the town and vicinity. Bastian Traver was the only one
of the name in the list of tax-payers in what is now the town of
Rhinebeck in 1723, and it is possible all of the name now
here, or who have ever been here, were his descendants. His
wife was Christina Uhl, who was also of Palatine descent, the
name in the old records being Ohle. Traver, in the same records,
is sometimes Dreber, but generally Trieber. We have found
none of the name who were prepared to trace the line of their
descent further back than their grandfathers, though they were
in the sixth or seventh generation from the first settler of the
name.
CHAPTER XXVHL
RHINEBECK IN THE CIVIL WAR.
In the Civil War which broke out between the Free and
Slave States, on the election of Abraham Lincoln to the presi-
dency of the United States in i860, Rhinebeck contributed the
following soldiers to the Union Army :
Explanation. — * Killed in battle ; f Wounded ; J Saulsbury Prison ; § Died
in hospital.
One Hundred and Tzventy-eiglitJi Regiment y Company C. —
Francis S. Keese, Captain ; Howard H. Morse, First Lieutenant ;
Charles W. McKown, orderly Sergeant; J. Howard Asher, f
Second Sergeant ; John W. Keese, Fourth Sergeant ; George
Tremper, Second Corporal ; Frank W. Rikert,:}: Third Corporal ;
Derrick Brown, Fifth Corporal ; Clement R. Dean, Sixth Cor-
poral; David H. Hannaburgh, :}; Eighth Corporal. Privates —
James M. Braley, f John W. Kip, § Lemuel Marquart, George
W. Hamilton,f John H. Van Etten, Charles Rynders, Martin
V. B. Hawkins, William H. Hawkins, James A. Fraleigh, f
John W. Myers, f William A. Noxon§, Calvin Rikert, John
Gay, Edward F. Tater, Evert Traver, Charles W. Marquart, f
Albert Ostrom, Robert P. Churchill,* Jasper DeWint§, Charles
KHINEBECK IN THE CIVIL WAR. 221
Wooden,f Patrick Lyden, Robert H. Hayner §, Benjamin H.
Brown, Peter Scally, John E. Cole, Nathan Day, Robert Riseley
James L. H. Holdrige, James K. Brown, William B. Brown, :j:
Joseph Brown. *
One Hundred and Fiftieth Regiment, Company F. — John
L. Green, Captain ; Isaac F. Smith*, Corporal ; Elias A. Briggs,
Corporal ; James M. Sheak, Corporal ; William T. Francisco,
Wagoner, Privates — Philip Bowman, Jefferson Champlin, Wil-
liam B. Doyle, Thomas M. Fraleigh, Joseph LaBonta, John E.
Odell, Stephen H. Rynders, Samuel K. Rupely, John McKinny.
Compajiy G.- — Renselaer Worden, Alexander Worden, § Philan-
der Worden, § Walter R. Bush. Company K. — Wade H. Van
Steenburgh, First Lieutenant ; Landon Ostrom, First Sergeant ;
Enos B. Sylands, Third Sergeant ; Henry Lamp, Fourth Ser.
geant ; Jacob Heeb, Fifth Sergeant; Benjamin J. Hevenor,
Corporal. Privates — Charles M. Buckland, Leopold Oswold,
George A. Clark, William H. Dederick, John Griner, Amos T.
Lillie, Jacob Miller, DeWitt ShafTer, Charles Wynans, Law.
rence O'Brien, Frederick W. Pottenburgh, Stephen R. Tater
Harvy M. Traver, George A. Wager,§ Alfred Wooden, George
W. Buckmaster. Company B. — William Holridge, Edward Ta-
ter, Elisha Holdridge, Adam Weishaupt.
Forty-foiirtJi {People's Elszvorth Regiment\ — Privates — Jacob
Z. Hegeman, Charles Luff,* Edward LufT, Peter Norris, Samuel
Risely, John Raymond, Philip Sylands, Stephen Hamilton.
Ttventieth Regiment, N. Y. State Militia. — JacobTeal, f
Andrew J. Kip, George Mann, Charles Asher, William Norris,
William Rikert, George Traver, Douglass Marquardt, Thomas
Price.*
Regiments Unknoivn to Us. — Albert Prosius, f Thomas
O'Brian, Alfred Lewis,§ James W. Lewis,§ Avnor Proper, Sam-
uel DeWint,§ John DeWint,§ Andrew Fraleigh,§ Ambrose Os-
trom, Richard Sylands, David Wager, George Gay, Jacob Hand-
schue, David McCarty.
We have given the names of all of w^hom we could get
knowledge. We shall regret to learn that we have not found
all for whom the town should have had credit.
222 RHINEBECKIN THE CIVIL WAR.
OUR HOME GUARD.
To account for our " Home Guard " we find it necessary to
account for the war, in doing which we shall add a page to our
History that will interest those who were unborn or mere chil-
dren when it broke out, or who shall be born hereafter.
The Republican party held for the main doctrine of its
creed that the chattel slaveiy, retained by fifteen of the States
of our Union, was a " relic of barbarism," and that, as such, it
was the duty of Congress to prohibit it in the common territories.
The slaveholder held that it was a " divine institution," and that,
as such, he had a divine right to carry it into the common terri-
tories, and a constitutional right to have it protected therein by
the general government. The Democratic party, embracing all
the slaveholders and nearly all the voters in the Slave States^
strong in the Free States, and casting a majority of the popular
vote, held that, whether slavery was a " divine institution " or a
" relic of barbarism " were questions of which the Constitution
of the United States did not permit Congress to take cognizance ;
that, to effect the union of the States, Congress had been bound
to protect slavery to the full extent of its jurisdiction ; and that
in the common territories, where it had supreme authority, it
was as much bound to protect the property which a man had in
his slave, as that which he had in his house or his horse. The
Supreme Court of the United States had rendered a decision
confirming this view, and the slave States, declaring the doc-
trines of the Republican party " revolutionary," resolved among
themselves, and gave notice to the country, that they would
not abide the election of a President of the United States who
would owe his success to his endorsement of the doctrines of
the Republican party. Notwithstanding this menace, the Re-
publican party elected the President in November, i860, and^
true to their resolution, the Southern States voted themselves
out of the Union, formed themselves into a confederacy for
mutual defence and protection, and expelled the general gov-
ernment from their territories.
The constitution to which these States had assented made
it the duty of the general government to collect the duty on
OUR HOME tlUARl).
--,)
imports in all the States ; to maintain free commercial inter-
course between them ; to cause the laws passed by one to be
respected in all the others ; and to carry the mail. The hearts
of the Southern people having been estranged from the general
government, it was no longer possible for the President to ex-
ecute the laws of Congress in their midst with their consent.
He had, therefore, either to abandon his trust, or to break the
power by which he was resisted. He resolved on the latter course
and hence the war.
In Rhinebeck, as elsewhere, the people who remained at
home continued the debate at the street corners and in the
market places. The Democrats insisted that their Southern
fellow-countrymen had been insulted and outraged in the elec-
tion, and, therefore, received great provocation for what they
had done. The Republicans, alarmed and exasperated by the
strength, persistence and prowess of the Southern armies, be-
came intolerant of the speech of their Democratic neighbors,
pronounced it "traitorous," and organized the " Home Guard,"
fully " armed and equipped," to admonish them to keep a patri-
otic restraint on their tongues. They treated us to an occasion
al dress parade, but were never called to the performance of
serious or repressive duties. Some of its members are reposing
in our beautiful Union Cemetery, but their graves are not hon-
ored on Decoration Day, and we give them this page in our
History to keep them in grateful remembrance.
The Republican loved his cause, which was good, and the
Democrat loved his country, which was at stake ; and, to the
honor of both, the cause and the country, have both been saved
by their mutual efforts. The extinction of slavery was not the
object with which the Republican party entered the contest ;
and yet, if it had not become the fruit of the military success,
there would have been no return to the country for its outlay
of blood and treasure that might not have been had without
cost.
Though not foreseen by the statesman or philanthro-
pist, the time for the emancipation of the slave, and the bap-
tism of the nation in blood for the washing away of the sin of
his bondage, had fully come. As the fruit of the war, the law
224 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
written in the hearts of men has been written into the Constitu-
tion of the nation with the point of the soldier's spear, by the
Hght of burning homes and harvests, in the blood of its sons.
It is now committed to the care and keeping of men who know
no law that has not been thus written on stones or visible
parchment, and we shall have peace and prosperity until the
waters, become poisoned by stagnation, are again " troubled by
the angels^' and thus fitted for the healing of the people, crip-
pled and made sore by oppression.
OLD BUILDINGS. 22$
APPENDIX.
OLD BUILDINGS.
The houses of the settlers in the wilderness of the New
World, we are told, were at first built after this fashion: "A
square pit was dug in the ground, cellar fashion, six or seven
feet deep, and as long and as broad as was deemed neeessary.
This was cased all around with timber, which was lined with
the bark of trees or something else to prevent the caving in of
the earth. This cellar was floored with plank, and wainscoted
overhead for a ceiling ; a roof of spars was reared clean up, and
the spars covered with green sods or bark, so that they could
live dry and warm in their houses with their entire families for
two, three and four years, it being understood that partitions
are run through these cellars, which are adapted to the size of
the families." The Dutch secretary. Van Tienhoven, informs
us that "the wealthy and principal men in New England, in the
beginning of the colonies, commenced their first dwelling houses
in this fashion for two reasons — first, in order not to waste time
building, and not to want food the next season ; secondly, in
order not to discourage poor, laboring people whom they brought
over in large numbers from Fatherland."
Of the ninety-seven people in Rhinebeck in 1723, nearly all
who built houses probably built them in this fashion. Of course,
all trace of them disappeared in the next generation, and the
houses built later, and of stone, are all that are now left us.
It is not certain that there was a single settler in the town
of Rhinebeck anywhere before the year 1700. The Kip house,
which became part of the Beekman house, and is now part of
the Heermance house, was built in 1700. It is claimed that
the old Bonesteel tavern, on the post road near Red Hook Vil-
lage, was built in 171 1, because a brick was found in it bearing
this date. There was no Bonesteel found in this country in
1 7 14. Nicholas Bonesteel was here in 1723, and probably the
owner of the house at this date. The Van Steenburghs were
here in 1740. The stone house which was the residence of
226 HISTORY OF RHINEBECK.
Nicholas B. Van Steenburgh, in the northern part of the village,
and which was taken down by his son, William, a few years
since, had a stone lintel inscribed as follows: RSB | TSB ]
BSB 1 MSB I ABIG | SNDP | April 15. 1731. These initials
are in two rows.
Tunis Pier was here in 1723. The farm, now the property
of George F. Cookingham, was sold to ChristofTel Cramer
by Henry Beekman, in 1739, bounded on the south by the
creek and Tunis Pier. The old stone house being demolished
on the south side of the creek, had a stone inscribed as follows :
"W. T. P. 1764." This house, like the Kip houses at the
river, and apparently all the stone houses built by the first set-
tlers, had but one room on the ground floor, and received an
additional room, either of stone or of wood, in after years. We
think the date on the Cookingham house was on the addition,
and the original room built at a much earlier date. The stone
house now occupied by Jacob L. Tremper, has a stone inscribed,
" Jan Pier, 1774." We think this house also received an addi-
tion to the original house, probably by Isaac Davis, who occu-
pied it after 1796, and owned, and, we presume, built the mill
in the immediate vicinity, still in the recollection of many of us.
The stone house now owned by Ann O'Brian, on the post road
in the south of the village, is on lands leased to Johannes Ben-
ner, in 1739, and may have been built by him about this date.
The old house taken down by Lewis Asher, a short time since,
was the miller's house, and doubtless came into being with the
mill, before 1730. The lower mill was built after the upper^
The old stone house near it was also the miller's house, and not
older than the mill. The old parsonage of the Reformed Dutch
Church was a stone building ; but as the church had no pastor
before 1740, and probably not until after 1750, this house was
probably not built until after the latter date. The house in
West Market street, known as the " Old State Prison," and re_
cently taken down, was probably older than 1730, and built by
William Traphagen, who had a deed from Henry Beekman, the
father, for lands as far back as 17 10, which probably covered
the land occupied by this house.
The house known as " Old Tammany," further north, was
TOWN AND I'RliCINCT SUPERVISORS. 22/
kept by a Kip in 1798, and the stone part of the house was
probably built many years before this date. Thcrevvas a
stone house on the premises which became the property
of Alfred Drury, and was taken down by him some years sincci
It was doubtless built at an early date, but we have not learned
by whom. The stone house taken down by Charles I. Cramer
was also old, but how old we have not learned. We think it
was built on land sold by Henry Beekman, the father, to Jacob
Kip, in 1 7 14, and sold by him to Gerardus Lewis, his son-in-law,
in 1720. Gerardus Lewis probably built the house. The old
stone house at the " flat rock" was built in 1730, by Isaac Kip.
John Kip, the son of Hendrick, had a house north of the old
Roliff Kip house before 171 5, Hendrick Kip having taken one
third of his share of the Kip lands north, and the other two
thirds south of Jacob's lands. John sold the north to his uncle,
in 171(3.
The house occupied by Abraham Brown, south of this vil_
lage, we are told, was built in parts at different dates, the
north part by Adam Eckert, in 1719, and the south part in
1763. The initials on the north part are as follows: A. N. E.
Peter Brown's house, we are told, was built by Heerman Brown,
the common ancestor of the Rhinebeck Browns, in 1753. The
date on the knocker of the old Monfort Tavern is 1760. The
Bergh house, formerly the residence of Major John Pawling, has
a stone over the door inscribed " J. P. N. P., July 4, 1861." The
stone house below Monroe's, now the property of Lewis Liv-
ingston, Esq., once Van Steenburgh's, and later Smith's Inn, is
old, but there is no record to tell us how old.
TOWN AND PRECINCT SUPERVISORS.
Our town records do not tell us who were Justices of the
Peace by appointment of the provincial or State authorities.
We have found incidental references to Arnout Vele, Martin
Hoffman, Gerrit Van Wagenen, John Van Deusen, and Gerrit
Van Benthuysen as Justices of the Peace for the precinct of
Rhinebeck before the Revolution. And we have found that in
1798 Isaac Kip, Jr., and Isaac Stoutenburgh, Jr., consented, as
Justices of the Peace, to the manumission by Frederick Streit
228 APPENDIX.
of his slave, Cuffee Rock. And though we have no record
of their election, we have found that Jacob Heermance, John
Tappen, and James Montfort were Justices of the Peace for
the town of Rhinebeck between 1828 and 1833.
WARD SUPERVISORS.
Henry Beekman from 1722 to 1724
Barent Van Wagenen " 1724 to
Barent Van Benthuysen " 1732 to 1734
PRECINCT SUPERVISORS.
John Van Dense from 1749 to 1751
Gerrit Van Benthuysen " 1752 to 1755
Petrus DeWitt " 1756 to 1757
Gerrit Van Benthuysen " 1758 to 1760
Petrus DeWitt " 1761 to 1761
Peter Van Benthuysen " 1762 to 1762
Peter Ten Broeck " 1763 to 1766
John Van Ess " 1767 to 1771
James Smith " 1772 to 1774
John Van Ess " 1775 to 1775
Peter DeWitt " 1776 to 1780
Anthony Hoffman " 1781 to 1785
TOWN SUPERVISORS.
^Town organized March 7, 1788.)
Peter Contine from 1786 to 1788
William Eadcliff " 1789 to 1791
DavidVanNess " 1792 to 1794
Peter Contine, Jr " 1795 to 1797
Isaac Stoutenburgh " 1798 to 1800
Andrew Heermance " 1801 to 1803
Peter Contine. Jr t " 1804 to 1805
David Van Ness " 1806 to 1808
JohnCox,Jr " 1808 to 1812
(Red Hook taken off June 2. 1812.)
John Cox, Jr from 1813 to 1818
CoertDuBoise " 1819 to 1820
Christian ScheU " 1821 to 1824
Garret Van Keuren " 1825 to 1829
Isaac F. Russell " 1830 to 1832
Frederick I. Pultz. . . " 1833 to 1834
Henry S. Quitman " 1835 to 1836
Conrad Ring " 1837 to 1839
John Armstrong, Jr " 1840 to 1840
James A. A. Cowles " 1841 to 1843
Nicholas B. Van Steenburgh •. . . " 1844 to 1844
Moses Ring '• 1845 to 1845
Tunis Wortman " 1846 to 1847
James Monfort " 1848 to 1848
Isaac I. Piatt " 1849 to 1849
Jacob G. Lambert " 1850 to 1850
Ambrose Wager " 1851 to 1851
TOWN AND PRECINCT SUPERVISORS. 229
James C. McCarty " 1852 to 1852
James Monfort " 1853 to 1853
John N. Oamer '« 1854 to 1855
Richard 13. Sylands " 1856 to 1856
Theophiliis Nelson " 1857 to 1857
Richard J. Garrettson <• 1859 to 1859
James C. McCarty " I860 to 1861
Andrew ,1. Heermance " 1862 to 1863
Ambrose Wager '• 1864 to 1865
Smith Quick " 1866 to 1866
William M. Sayer " 1867 to 1867
Robert L. Garrettson " 1868 to 1868
Virgil C. Traver '• 1869 to 1872
John G. Ostrom " 1873 to 1873
Joseph H. Baldwin " 1874 to 1876
James H. Kip " 1877 to 1878
William Bergh Kip " 1879 to 1880
PRECINCT CLERKS.
Johannis A. Ostrander from 1749 to 1756
Peter Ostrander " 1757 to 1765
Abraham Glimph " 1765 to 1765
William Beam •' 1766 to 1785
Lcdowick Elsever " 1786 to 1786
TOWN CLERKS.
(Town organized, March 7, 1788.)
David Elsever from 1787 to 1790
William Radclift. Jr " 1791 to 1791
Henry Lyle " 1792 to 1792
John Cox " 1793 to 1793
Henry Shop " 1794 to 1812
(Red Hook, taken off, June 2, 1812.)
Henry Shop from 1813 to 1816
Henry F. TaUmage " 1817 to 1819
Garret Van Keuren " 1820 to 1820
John Fo\\ks, Jr '• 1821 to 1825
Jacob Heermance ■' 1826 to 1826
William B. Piatt " 1827 to 1828
Henry De Lamater " 1829 to 1830
Henry C. Hoag " 1831 to 1831
Conrad Ring " 1832 to 1834
Stephen A. DuBoise " 1835 to 1835
Henry W. Mink " 1836 to 1836
Tunis Wortman " 1837 to 1843
George W. Schryver " 1844 to 1844
Tunis Wortman " 1845 to 1845
George W. Bard " 1846 to 1847
John C. McCarty " 1848 to 1849
Albert A. Rider " 1850 to 1852
Tunis Wortman " 1853 to 1853
Albert A. Rider " 1854 to 1854
Tunis Wortman " 1855 to 1855
Harvey M. Traver " 1856 to 1856
Tunis Wortman " 1857 to 1857
Calvin Jennings " 1858 to 1858
Tunis Wortman " 1859 to 1859
George H. Ackert " I860 to 1861
230 APPENDIX.
John D. Judson " 1863 to 1863
George W. Hogan " 1863 to 1863
Simon Welch " 1864 to 1864
James A. Monfort " 1865 to 1865
Jacob H. Pottenburgh '• 1866 to 1866
Jacob Rynders " 1867 to 1867
Edward Brooks " 1868 to 1868
William H. Sipperly " 1869 to 1870
Tunis Wortman " 1871 to 1873
Jacob Rynders " 1873 to 1873
William H. Hevenor " 1874 to 1876
Jacob H. Pottenburgh " 1877 to 1880
JUSTICES OF THE PEACE.
Jacob Heermance from 1828 to 1833
John Tappen " 1829 to 1832
James Monfort " 1830 to 1834
ELECTIONS RECORDED.
Smith Dunning 1833
Edward E. Cowles, in place of Smith Dunning 1834
Abraham Van Keuren, for four years 1834
Stephen McCarty, for four years 1835
Wm. J. Stewert, to take the place of E. E. Cowles •. 1835
James Monfort 1836
William J. Stewert 1837
Abraham Van Keuren 1838
Stephen McCarty 1839
James Monfort 1840
Stephen McCarty 1840
John B. VanWagenen 1840
William J. Stewert 1841
Isaac F. Russell 1842
Moses Ring 1843
Tunis Wortman 1844
James Monfort 1845
Cornelius E. Wynkoop 1846
Moses Ring 1847
Tunis Wortman 1848
William Bates 1849
James Monfort, for full term 1850
John G. Ostrom, to fill vacancy 1850
John G. Ostrom 1851
Tunis Wortman 1852
Moses Ring 1853
Hazard Champlin 1854
Theophilus Gillender 1855
Tunis Wortman 1856
WiUiam Bates 1857
Moses Ring 1858
Theophilus Gillender 1859
Tunis Wortman, for fill term 1860
Isaac F. Russel, to fill vacancy 1860
John G. Ostrom, for full term 1861
Jacob I. Van Wageneu, to fill vacancy 1861
Isaac F. Russell 1863
John N. Cramer 1863
Tunis Wortman 1864
TOWN AND PRECINCT SUPERVISORS. 23 1
William Van Wagenen 1865
Isaac F. Russel 1866
Jacob M. Hogan 1867
Henry W. Mink 1868
Tunis Wortman 1873
Isaac F. Russell 1870
Theophilus Gillender, full term 1871
W^illiam B. Vibert, short term 1871
Conrad Marquardt 1873
Tunis Wortman 1873
Isaac F. Russell, full term 1874
Virgil C, Traver, short term 1874
Theophilus Gillender 1875
James A. Monfort 1876
William Cross 1877
Robert B. Emerson 1878
Theophilus Gillender 1879
James A. Monfort 1880
In the sixty-three years which intervened between the
commencement of our records, in 1749, and the separation of
Red Hook from Rhinebeck, in 18 12, the ofifice of Supervisor
was held by fourteen different persons, eight of whom were
from Red Hook, five from Rhinebeck, and one of uncertain
residence. The eight Red Hook men held the office for forty-
two years ; the five Rhinebeck men for eighteen years ; and
John Van Dense, of uncertain residence, for two years.
UNITED STATES SENATOR FROM RHINEBECK.
John Armstrong, by appointment of the Governor, in
1803 ; by election in 1804. Appointed Minister to France in
1804, ^'"id resigned the office of Senator.
REPRESENTATIVES IN CONGRESS.
Egbert Benson, - - ist and 2d Congresses.
Isaac Bloom, . . . . . 8th Congress.
Philip J. Schuyler, ----- 15th Congress.
In 18 12 the towns of Rhinebeck and Clinton, in Dutchess
County, voted with Columbia County in the election of a mem-
ber of Congress.
STATE SENATORS.
Anthony Hoffman, . - . - 1788-9-90.
Thomas Tillotson, - - - - 1 791 to 1799.
Robert Sands, - - - - 1797 to 1800.
Peter Contine, Jr., . - - - 1798 to 1 801.
Morgan Lewis, ... - 1811 to 1814.
Peter R. Livingston, - - - 1820-22:1826-29.
William Kelly, . . - - 1856 to 1858.
232
APPENDIX.
MEMBERS OF ASSEMBLY FROM RHINEBECK.
Anthony Hoffman,
Peter Contine, Jr.,
1778-9; 1784.
- 1788.
Red Hook.
Red Hook.
Thomas Tillotson,
.
1788-9-90.
David Van Ness,
1891.
Red Hook.
William Radcliff, -
.
1792-3.
Philip J. Schuyler,
Abraham Adriance,
-
1798.
1800-2.
Koert DuBois,
1810-
-I I ; 1820-21.
John W. Wheeler,
1 8 1 8-20.
Red Hook.
David Tomlinson,
.
1819.
John Cox, ...
Peter R. Livingston,
-
1822.
1823.
John Armstrong, Jr.,
Cornelius C. Elmendorf,
- 1827.
1825.
Red Hook.
Francis A. Livingston,
_
1828.
George Lambert,
...
1833-
Freeborn Garrettson,
.
1835; 1845.
Edmund Elmendorf,
I
841. Tivoli.
William H. Feller,
1851.
Red Hook.
Augustus Martin,
1852-3.
Red Hook.
Ambrose Wager, -
Richard J. Garretson,
1855-58.
i860.
Edmund Green,
1862.
Red Hook,
John N. Cramer,
Alfred T. Ackert,
- - -
1864.
1868.
STAATSBURGH.
The author of the History of Rhinebeck is indebted to
Mr. Edward Braman, of New York, for the following appropri-
ate and interesting communication :
As Staatsburgh, or Pawling's purchase, was for so long a
period a part of Rhinebeck Precinct, it would not be inappro-
priate to give a short sketch of its early history, and some of
its earliest settlers. The results of an attempt to do so, with
such material and notes as are at hand, is embodied in this com-
munication. Time will not admit of more.
Henry Pawling, of Marbletown, died about 1695. His will,
proved 25th of March, that year, was made in 1691. He left
all his property to his wife, born Neeltje Roosa, for her life-time,
or until she should marry, with remainder to his children. Those
STAATSBURGH, 233
surviving him were Jane, Wyntie, John, Albert, Ann, Henry and
Mary. On the 26th of May, 1 701, Neiltie PawHng, widow of Hen-
i*y Pawhng, gentleman, Jane Pawling, maiden, Richard Brodhead
and Wyntie, his wife, and John Pawling, sold to Samuel Staats,
of the city of New York, esquire, and Dirck Van den burgh, of
the same place, gentleman, all their rights in the tract, in Dutch.
ess County, called Pawling's Purchase, for ;!^ 130. But, as Albert
Ann, Henry and Mary, children of the said Henry Pawling,
were " infants under the age of one and twenty," their rights
were not conveyed. Dirck Van den burgh probably soon con.
veyed his interest to Dr. Staats. It may be that the name of
Staats-burgh was suggested by the names of these two proprie-
tors.
Of the Pawling heirs, Albert Pawling, born 1685, married
Catharine Beekman, widow of Capt. John Rutsen, but had no
children. He died in 1745, leaving a large estate. After pro-
viding liberally for his wife and mother (who was still living in
1745), he left the residue of his estate to Levi Pawling, third
son of his brother Henry, with remainder to John, the brother
of Levi.
Ann Pawling married Tjerck De Witt, of Kingston, and
had five children. To one of these, Petrus, his father, Tjerck
(will proved 1762), left all his land in Pawling's Purchase, "the
same as conveyed to me in sundry conveyances."
Heniy Pawling lived at Marbletown. His son. Col. Levi
Pawling, was a prominent man in Ulster County, delegate to
the Provincial Convention in 1775, and commissioned Colonel
of one of the four regiments of the Ulster militia, in the same
year. Another son was Major John Pawling, mentioned here-
after.
Mary Pawling, born 1692, married Thomas Van Keuren,
of Marbletown; but who, in a deed to John Pawling in 1767,
styles himself of Staatsburgh.
Dr. Samuel Staats was the son of Major Abram Staats, of
Albany, and Catrina, his wife, daughter of Jochem Wessels.
He learned his profession in Holland, and resided there many
years, returning to New York about 1688. He was twice mar-
ried. His first wife, Johanna Rynders, was the mother of all
234 APPENDIX.
his children. His second wife, whom he married in 1709, was
Catharina Howarden, probably widow of Thomas and mother
of Margaret Howarden, who married Robert Livingston. He
had nine children living in 1703, but in his will, dated Septem-
ber 21, and proved November 14, 1715, he names only six.
These were Gertrude, widow of Peter Neagle, but who married
in 1 7 16, Andries Coeymans ; Sarah, married, in 1704, Isaac
Governeur; Catalina, married, in 171 3, Stephen Van Cortlandt ;
Anna Elizabeth, married, 171 3, Philip Schuyler; Johanna born
1 694.*
Sometime subsequent to the death of Dr. Staats, a survey
of the purchase was made by Charles Clinton. It was divided
into two ranges of lots, the first nine on the river called "water
lots," and nine in the rear called " wood lots," extending to
Crumelbow Creek. A division was made between the heirs of
Pawling and Staats, by which lots i, 10, 3, 13, 9 and 18 fell to
the former. These, by virtue of sundry conveyances, came
finally into the hands of Major John Pawling and Captain Petrus
De Witt, who were, as has been seen, first cousins.
Major John Pawling had married his cousin, Neeltje Van
Keuren, and in 1761 he built the stone house on the post road,
now owned by the heirs of Edwin Bergh. It bears the inscription
" J. P., N. P., July 4, 1761." He was a leading man in his day.
He took an active part in the Revolution, and was personally
acquainted with Washington, and many of the prominent men
of that day. Late in life he suffered severe reverses of fortune.
He died December 30, 1819, aged eighty-seven, and was buried
in the Reformed Dutch Churchyard at Rhinebeck. By his
first wife he had four children. His second wife was Maria Van
Duser, of Claverack, by whom he had ten children. She sur-
vived him, and died in 1832, aged eighty-four.
Captain Petrus De Witt owned the south half of lot No. 3
(the same as afterwards owned by William C. Emmet, where he
had his residence, which he called " Wittmount "), and also a
landing, storehouse, etc., to which there was a public road ; and
there a considerable busine.^s was carried on in the days of sloop
*Anthony White and Johanna Staats were married in New York, January 26
1717 ; probably this lady.
STAATSBURGH 235
navigation. About 1782, he sold Wittmount to Brockholst
Livingston, who had just returned from Spain, where he had
been Secretary of Legation, under his brother-in-hiw, John
Jay. Captain De Witt owned lots 9 and 18, at the south end
of the purchase. On this was a log house to which he removed,
and made preparations to build a handsome brick mansion. He
had the brick made on the place, but the Quartermaster of the
Continental Army encamped at Fishkill and Newburgh, need-
ing bricks for ovens, heard of these at Staatsburgh, seized and
carried them away to Fishkill. It is said they were never paid
for, and Captain De Witt, fearing a repetition of the exploit
built a frame house, which he filled in with sun-dried bricks,
though iihe immense chimneys were of the usual red bricks.
Captain Petrus De Witt married Rachel Radcliff, sister of
Jannetje, wife of Dominie Van Hoevenburgh, and doubtless
daughter of Jochem Radcliff and Hilletje Hoogeboom. He
died Jaruary 3, 1790, aged 6^^ and she, July 20, 1794, aged 70.
They were buried at Rhinebeck. He left one son and two
daughters — Colonel John De Witt, of De Witt's (since Le Roy's)
Mills, who married Catharine, daughter of Dirck Van Vliet, of
the present town of Clinton ; Hilletje, who died unmarried, and
Ann, who married Philip Dubois Bevier, " of Rochester in the
county of Ulster, esquire." The daughters inherited Rocksdale,
which they sold, in 1809, to their cousin, Henry Van Hoeven-
burgh. After some changes, a large part of this estate, includ-
ing the mansion, became the property of Cornelius Van Vliet,
nephew of the wife of Colonel John De Witt. Mr. Van Vliet
was father of the late Dr. Isaac F. Van Vliet, of Rhinebeck.
In 1869, the other part was purchased by Alfred De Witt, a
grandson of Colonel John De Witt, who makes it his occasional
residence.
Lots 2 and 12 were sold to Teunis Van Benschoten, 13th
of May, 1758, by Lewis Morris, Jr., of Morrisania, who inherited
from his mother, Catharina Staats. Perhaps Van Benschoten
never settled on these lands, but he and Elsie, his wife, sold
them, 1 5th of October, 1 773, to Christian Bergh. Lots 6 and 1 5
were sold by Gertrude Coeymans, of the province of New Jersey,
widow, 22d of May, i76i,to Christian Bergh, of Dutchess Coun-
236 APPENDIX.
ty, yeoman, for iJ" 1,000. Ten years later, Mr. Bergh built a
stone house, which remained until 1854. Upon its east wall,
facing the road, was carved, on two hearts joined, " C. B., A. M.
B., — A. B., H. B., — Je. 21, 1771 " (June 21, 1 771, probably), the
initials being his own, his wife's, his son Adam's and those of
the latter's wife. After the death of Christian Bergh, this prop-
erty was owned by his son, John, who, with Elizabeth, his wife,
released it to Charles Shaw and others, of the city of New York,
7th of March, 1789. In the following year they sold the south-
erly half to Captain Jesse Eames, of Framingham, Mass., and
the northerly half to Captain Isaac Russel, of Sherburne, in the
same State. In these two deeds, the lands are said to be part of a
tract " commonly called Malmesbury, or Pauling's purchase."
This preserves the memory of a fortunately unsuccessful attempt
to change the name of Staatsburgh. These purchasers had been
in the army, in the War of the Revolution, and, passing through
Staatsburgh in charge of some prisoners, after Burgoyne's sur-
render, were so charmed with the country that they decided to
remove to it after the war. Captain Eames died in 1829, aged
ninety, and Captain Russell, in 1821, aged seventy. Isaac F.
Russell, of Rhinecliff, is the youngest son of Captain Russell.
Anna Elizabeth Schuyler conveyed lots 4 and 1 1 to Isaac
Feller, 27th of March, 1764. The latter, 17th of December,
1767, sold to Timothy Doughty and John Cornell (both, proba-
bly, from Long Island), and they, 9th of May, 1775, sold, -for
;!(^i,025, all of lot 2 and part of lot 11, to Margaret Uhl, of Beek-
man Precinct. She was the second wife of Daniel Uhl, of " the
Clove," and was now a widow with a family of sons and daugh-
ters. Her sons, John and Captain Frederick, succeeded to the
property, one of the finest in Staatsburgh, and it was the home-
stead of the family about half a century. Captain Frederick
Uhl married Huldah, daughter of Captain David Mulford.
Catalina (Staats) Van Cortlandt owned lots 7 and 16. Her
heirs sold these 9th of May, 1775, to Captain David Mulford,
of Easthampton, Long Island. He died of small pox, January
31, 1778, aged 55, and was succeeded by his son. Job Mulford.
The latter, who married Hannah, daughter of Mrs. Margaret
Uhl, was father of the late David Mulford. Most of this prop-
STAATSBURGH 237
erty has remained in the fainil)- to this day. They held their
"centennial" in 1875. The village of Staatsburgh i^ mostly
built on lot No. 7.
Lots 5 and 14 fell to the share of Sarah Gouverneur, and
descended to her daughter, Sarah, second wife of Lewis Morris,
who sold to Peter Prosius and George Stover, about 1774. No-
vember 22d, that year, these two divided the lots, Prosius taking
the northerly, and Stover the southerly halves of each, except-
ing that previous to this time 125 acres off the east end of lot
14 had been sold to Jacob and Adam Shaver, and 25 acres to
Everardus Bogardus. All these are Rhinebeck names. Prosius
sold his part to Jacob Lewis the next year, for the latter mort-
gaged it to Mrs. Morris, i6th of June, 1775. Stover had mort-
gaged his part to her also. These mortgages were foreclosed
by Samuel Ogden, executor (and son-in-law) of Mrs. Morris,
and sold to Morgan Lewis, of the city of New York, May
4, 1792. General Lewis obtained re-leases from all the parties
interested, shortly after. Jacob Lewis was then deceased, leav-
ing a widow, Rebecca, one son, Leonard, and four daughters-
all married but the youngest. Stover was living at Claverack.
Christiana, wife of Prosius, re-leased dower. Her maiden name
was Zipperly. The house built by Jacob Lewis is still standing.
About 1776 Captain Christopher Hughes came to Staats-
burgh from New Haven, where he had been in partnership with
Benedict Arnold in the West Lidia Trade. He was a man of
means and enterprise, and invested largely in land, both in
Staatsburgh, and in the Patent of Hyde Park. His residence
was at the forks of the road at the top of the " Clay Hills," on
the northerly half of lot 3. He married, as his second wife,
Abigail, daughter of the first David Mulford, and they had, be-
sides sons, two daughters ; Elizabeth, who married Christian
Schell, and Abigail, who married Elijah Baker, and inherited
the homestead. Mr Baker built the large white mansion north
of the old Hughes house. Christopher Hughes, a son of Cap-
tain Christopher by his first wife, married Rachel, daughter of
Major John Pawling, and was ancestor of the present Hughes
family of Staatsburgh. Captain Hughes died May 22, 1805,
aged 60. years.
238 APPENDIX.
There were doiibtless other residents than those named in
Staatsburgh, before the Revolution, but on the post road the
properties were large, and the proprietors owned many slaves*
Among the largest slave owners were the DeWitts and the Uhls.
The negroes had their own burying ground, still known to the
residents. There were often two or more dwellings on the same
property, besides the negro houses, some of which were occu-
pied by persons engaged in mercantile or mechanical pursuits,
both at the landing and on the post road, at an early day. Job
Mulford is described as of " Rhinebeck Precinct," merchant^
in 1778.
Several of the inhabitants of Staatsburgh signed the " Rev-
olutionary Pledge," at Rhinebeek, in 1775, as John Pawling^
Petrus DeWitt, David and Lemuel Mulford, and others, as will
be seen on reference to the list.
Ed\vari» Braman.
New York, January 20, i<S8i.
AN OLD SETTLEMENT.
Jacomintie's Vly was deeded to Gerrit Artsen, Jan Elting
and Arie Roosa by the Indians, on the 8th qf June, 1686, but
not covered by the royal patent to these people from Governor
Dongan in 1688. It waSi included in the patent to Henr^- Beek-
man for his Rhinebeck lands in 1697, and on the 2d of January,
1705-6 he sold it to the heirs of Jan Elting for sixteen pounds*
subject to a rent of two shillings per annum, Jacomintie being
the name of Jan Elting's \vidow. Passing from one owner to
another, the Vly, in 1757. was the property of Barent Van Wag-
enen, Gose Van Wagenen and Mathis Sleight. At this date
the quit rent was all in arrears, and paid by these parties in a
settlement set forth in the following old document in possession
of Captain William Van Wagenen. The remarkable thing
about this settlement is that Henry Beekman, the son, charged
the rent, not from the date of his father's patent, but from that
of Artsen & Co., which was ten \'ears older, and which did not
include the Vly.
AN OLD SETTLEMENT. 239
"The quit rent of Jacomintiess Vly, at 2s. per annum. Bar
ent Van Wagenar for one half thereof, must pay 3 parts from
5 parts, for the other half thereof he must pay 5 parts from
9 parts, so he must pay \<\d. a year for his part.
'* Gose Van Wagenar, for one half thereof he must pay 2
parts from 5 parts, for the other half thereof he must pay 2
parts from 9 parts, so he must pay j^d \ a year for his part,
Mathis Slaught, for one half thereof he must pay 2 parts
from 9 parts, so he must pay 2\d \ 2, year for his part,
Barent Van Wagenar Pays £0. \s. 2d. a year.
Gose Van Wagenar Pays o. o. 7^. \ year.
Mathis Slaght Pays o. o. 2^. \ year.
£0. 2s. od.
1757, being 69 years to pay for these three.
Barent V. Wagenar Pays £4. os. 6d.
Gose Van Wagenar Pays 2. 2. 5.
Mathis Slaght Pays o. 15. i.
£6. I Ss. od.
RiNEBECK, 26 Oct., 1757.'
"Then Received from Johannes Van Wagenar Six pound
Eighteen Shillings, it being in full for quit rent due on a ma^
dow called Jacomintie's Vley to the year of one thousand sev,
en Hundred fifty & eight, & on January the Twenty Seventh
to that time, it being paid to me.
Hen. Beekman."
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